Such Love

These photos are too sweet not to share.
I love taking abundant pictures of Tennyson because I know someday we'll look back on these days with sadness at how quickly the time has gone by, but always feeling blessed beyond measure to be this little boy's parents. My, how we cherish him. The love is often so overwhelming. You are loved more than we could ever tell you, Tennyson Harper. So very loved.

Can't you tell how much Tennyson adores his Daddy?

Oh yes, the mighty love we have for him.

What Do You Do With All Those Paper Towels?

You make a towel tower, of course!!! Tom would stack them up and Tennyson could hardly wait to knock them over! They had so much fun!!

When Tennyson was tired of knocking over the paper towels, it was storytime. Tennyson routinely brings us books and loves to snuggle in our laps. I love to see he and his Daddy reading together!

Last Cookout of the Summer

Last Sunday my sister and her husband hosted our family's last official cookout of the summer. We enjoyed really tasty food, each other's company, and a beautiful sunset. It was during this sunset that I was preparing to take a picture of my youngest sister, Courtney, and my younger brother, Cameron, when I heard my Dad say the food on the grill smelled good. So I accidentally told Courtney and Cameron to "smell" instead of "smile"!

Here's the "real" photo! I love my sibs!

The Magic of Being Outside

I always found it interesting how you can take a crying child outside and they usually stop crying instantly. I guess it's all the new stimuli they can see and hear. Tennyson has always loved being outside, but recently it's the only place he wants to be. He points to the door, runs to the door, and tries to open the door. Thankfully, he hasn't figured out how to turn knobs (or deadbolts for that matter). Here are some photos from the past week of our little guy just enjoying nature.

You can't really tell but he was beating up the grass!

LOVE the expression on his face!!!

"No more photos, please."

He soaked himself with the hose

How cute is this? Just holding on to Daddy's finger.

I felt like I was tracking a wild animal

Tennyson's Newest Accomplishments

Aside from being the cutest thing we've ever laid eyes on, Tennyson has added WORDS to his list of accomplishments. His first word (other than "Dada" and "Mama") was "up". He also says "hot", "hat", "bath", and "apple". He can also show us where a hat goes, by putting his hand on top of his head like a rooster! I haven't been able to catch it with my camera yet, but I'm trying. It's just too funny for words!! Tennyson also blows kisses, but he doesn't quite have it down. When we blow kisses and tell him to do it he just straightens out his arm and quickly flings it out to the side. So cute!

As I have mentioned in just about every post about him, HE IS BUSY. I can have my house spotless, the way I like it, and in about 30 seconds flat he's gone to every room and disrupted whatever he can get his hands on. It's how he learns and plays, and I know it's natural. But having to live with an unkempt house was difficult for me. I have learned that there's no point in trying to pick up until he goes to bed for the evening. Otherwise I'd spend my whole day cleaning. And while that's fun for some of us, it's useless.

Deep in concentration as he shreds the tissues

On one of the many mornings Tom let me sleep in, he said Tennyson put Legos in the paper bag and carried it all over the house because he liked the noise it made.

Our new favorite thing he does is make "boy" noises while he plays. Tom and I just can't get enough of airplane noises, truck noises, and car noises! We love to listen to him playing by himself! We keep saying every stage is the best, especially as Tennyson learns to do and say more things. It's always exciting for us as new parents!

More Awesome Finds

Today I really cleaned up at the Barrington yard sales!!! I finished out Tennyson's fall and winter wardrobe, except for more socks and a winter coat. I even bought a Boppy pillow (with an extra cover), some little blue and white striped booties, and a newborn 3-piece outfit for my friend that's expecting twin boys.

Here's what I came home with for our little guy:

2 rompers, 5 onsies, a swimsuit, 2 long-sleeved shirts

a never-worn pair of Carter's shoes (the tissue was still in the toes!)

4 jackets, one of which is LL Bean

3 overalls, 4 pairs of pants (Osh Kosh, Talbots Kids, Carter's)

and 3 sets of pajamas

The grand total - $25!!! I am very pleased with my stash!

Tasty Tuesday ~ Best Banana Bread

BEST BANANA BREAD
Must give credit where credit is due. This is my mother's banana bread recipe, and personally it's my favorite.

Ingredients:
2 cups bread flour, sifted
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. banana flavor
1/2 tsp. butter flavor
2 eggs
1 cup bananas, mashed (3 large)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup shortening, melted
1 cup pecans, chopped

How to Make It:
1) Sifted together the first four ingredients in a large bowl
2) Beat the remaining ingredients (except the nuts) together in a small bowl and add to the dry ingredients
3) Mix in 1 cup pecans
4) Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour (or until toothpick comes out mostly clean)
5) Cool 5 minutes before serving

Exciting Acquisitions

I decided at 9:30 Friday night to go hit some yard sales bright and early the next morning, and I am so glad I did! I got some awesome stuff, including lots of fall/winter clothes for Tennyson. That was a task! For every yard sale I saw with boy clothes there were 5 with girl clothes. Boys are just harder on clothes, and I am really picky about what I buy so that made it a little more challenging. Aside from 8 gently used onsies, I got a little fleece vest (adorable!), a Baby Gap fleece jacket, and a windbreaker for maybe $15 total!

I also found a bunch of "new" books. The only time Tennyson sits still is when we read to him. We attribute that to the fact that we've read to him almost daily since the day he was born. He'll enjoy these!

By far the most exciting purchase was this jogging stroller. Not that I jog, but we do enjoy frequent walks, and we needed a stroller that was better equipped to handle dirt or gravel roads. It's in nearly perfect condition, though badly in need of cleaning. The best part is that it comes with a tire pump and you can plug the iPod into it and enjoy music as you walk because of the built-in speakers! Oh yeah, it's a sweet ride!


No, I didn't buy face wash at a yard sale. I got this from a retail store yesterday and LOVE it!! It's pink grapefruit facial cleanser and it's lovely. It's so fun trying new beauty products!

It's Been One of Those Days

Do you ever have those days where you wish you could just wake up and start all over? That's been my day today. It began early, way too early. Tennyson woke up crying a little after 5:00am so I went in to check on him. Normally I would just let him fuss and go back to sleep on his own but he was really wailing. So I put him in bed with us and he settled down and started to drift off until he realized Daddy was there, too, and he thought it was playtime. Yeah, that's not happening! So back we go into his nursery for a diaper change. Of course he chooses that moment to pee and therefore soaks the changing pad, but thankfully his clothes were still dry. Back in bed he goes without a fight.

I toss and turn and am finally able to doze off when my phone buzzes at quarter after 6:00. It's one of the dads who usually drops his daughter off at 6:30am (!) saying his wife came home from the hospital where she works in the middle of her shift and that she would bring their daughter later that morning so she could get some more sleep. Hooray! I can get another hour of sleep! About 10 minutes later Tennyson starts fussing. I am not totally convinced he ever went back to sleep. So my darling husband volunteers to go get him since he has to get up in 15 minutes anyway.

I had just dozed off for the third time when Tom's alarm goes off. You've got to be kidding me! I slap it around and finally get it to stop. About 3 minutes later I hear Tom open the front door. I am thinking "That's odd." Suddenly Tom opens our bedroom door and announces that the girl who was supposed to come "later" that morning is here! Apparently her parents didn't communicate very well! So I throw on some clothes and head downstairs. The mother was very apologetic and said something about beating her husband. Hahaha!

I get the kids settled and decide to eat some breakfast before the other 3 kids show up. I had just finished some yummy homemade Belgian waffles when Tennyson throws up on the kitchen rug. He has a very sensitive gag reflex so this is a fairly common occurrence in our home. (Last time he did it was Sunday when I gave him a pea from my plate, just as I had the night before. Well, he threw up and the only thing I had to catch it......my plate. Talk about a lost appetite!)

I get Tennyson cleaned off and tend to the stinky rug. Charlie arrives and his mom informs me that he pooped on the way to my house. Great. My day is looking up and it's not even 8 o'clock yet! I take care of him as soon as his Mom leaves, and shortly thereafter my other 2 charges arrive. Everyone is playing nicely and I finally find a minute to run to the bathroom. And it's then that I realize I had put my shorts on backwards. *sigh* Is it Saturday yet?

Moral Conservatism is Closest to the Heart of God

*The following may offend some of you more liberally minded readers....but I don't really care. It's my blog and I can put on here whatever I want! This is a call to all Christians to follow what God's infallible word teaches us and to consider that when voting for a presidential candidate in November.*

I don't know how many of you stayed up to watch Sarah Palin's acceptance speech last night, but she was awesome! This woman, the Governor of Alaska, is a mother of 5, including a 4-month old with Down Syndrome. Of course, the liberal-left media is shocked that she didn't abort when her doctors recommended it! (If you think I am kidding you obviously haven't listened to the news.) Her oldest is in the Armed Forces, and is being deployed to Iraq in November to protect our nation. God bless him and all our troops overseas! (If you have a problem with this war perhaps you also think we should be speaking German? I guess we should just let Islamic terrorists came over here and fly planes into buildings and kill 3,000 of our citizens.)

And yes, Sarah's 17-year old daughter is pregnant, but who cares? Oh, that's right the media does! As a conservative, against killing unborn babies, I have no doubt in my mind that Sarah and her husband, though disappointed the morals they instilled in their children were not upheld, will welcome their new grandchild with open arms and all the love that grandparents could have. How dare anyone say it is a reflection of her parenting! Our calling as parents is to teach our children right from wrong, but we cannot make all their decisions for them.

Since I am on my favorite topic of abortion I will get down to what I really want to say. And I will say it plainly. TRUE Christians are morally and ethically conservative, more specifically that they believe abortion and homosexuality are wrong. Was that plain enough? No, let me elaborate. Did God give Moses 10 commandments or were they suggestions? What part of THOU SHALT NOT KILL do we not get? I mean honestly people. Why, why would a Christian vote for a candidate that supports "a woman's right to choose." I hate that expression! It makes my blood boil! She HAD a choice when she had sex! And for those unfortunate women that get pregnant by rape, consider that that child didn't choose to be conceived in that situation. Two wrongs don't make a right. Liberals love to use the rape/incest-abortion argument to justify keeping all abortions legal. Did you know that in 2004 abortion due to rape or incest accounted for less that half a percent of all abortions! (http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/abreasons.html) So don't give me that! Abortion is WRONG in any circumstance! If you are Christian that thinks otherwise you need to go back to what God says in His word. It's in there folks.

I watched with my own eyes and heard with my own ears when Rick Warren asked Obama when life begins. This idiot (oh no, I called the "god" an idiot) says, AND I QUOTE, "that's above my pay grade." (http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080819/rick-warren-obama-s-abortion-answer-
not-clear-enough.htm) My response: Oh no, it's not!!! You are paid to represent and therefore answer to the American people! And there are people out there that are against abortion and gay marriage that are going to try and help put this guy in office. Dear Almighty God in heaven, save us from ourselves. (In case you are wondering, John McCain said without hesitation that life begins at "the moment of conception." Ding ding ding! That's the correct answer!) The Bible clearly says that God wove us in our mother's womb. Um....hello people. That's pretty clear that He values each and every life because HE created us.I was blessed enough to be raised in a Christian home, with morals and values and I am proud to say that I have upheld them. I saved myself for my husband on our wedding night. I have never been drunk, never smoked. (In case you are Bill Clinton supporter, no I've never smoked pot either.) I have counseled countless pregnant women who wanted to, and sometimes did, abort. (And until you've witnessed the emotional aftermath these women endure, and I have, don't ever say it's a good choice.) I always vote. My parents taught us the importance of letting your voice be heard. And I WANT my voice to be heard. My heart.......my heart is for all those unborn babies. Not fetuses, not tissues, BABIES. HUMANS, that have a right and a will to live.

I can and do base my vote on whether or not a candidate thinks it's okay to cut up and suck an unborn baby from a women's womb. I am NOT ashamed of that, nor should I be! But there is so much else at stake in this election - legalizing gay marriage, taxes being raised for families who are already struggling, leaving Iraq before the job is done, and making abortion even more accessible as an option, possibly including late-term as Barack Hussein Obama (oops, I just used his middle name) is not against it. (Don't even get me started on what that involves!)

We will all stand before God one day. And I know there are things I will have to answer for, we all will. But having the blood of millions of babies on my hands is not one of them. If you help to put a candidate in office that doesn't have the morals to protect the sanctity of human life then aren't you just as guilty as the doctors that perform the abortion because you did nothing to put an end to it? Umm hmm, that's what I thought.

But It Started Out So Well

Our Labor Day weekend was overall a good one. Tom, Tennyson, and I spent lots of quality time together just playing around the house, running errands, and being with family. Friday evening we headed out to my sister's house for my niece's second birthday. I just have to show you a picture of the cake! Bethany's favorite food is spaghetti, so what does the cake look like: a giant bowl of spaghetti and meatballs! It was amazing and delicious! It was the same lady who made Tennyson's polka-dotted cake. (Yes, Beth, she'll be doing the cake for your shower!)

Saturday evening I went out with a bunch of the women from my church for dinner and then we watched the wedding of a good friend of ours, who now lives in Kenya. It was such a beautiful wedding! And it was nice to have some female conversation without having any kids around. I love my son with all my heart, but every Mommy needs a break.

Monday was my mother's 61st birthday so we all gathered that night for pizza and homemade carrot cake. (Thanks for the recipe, Lisa!) The only downside to the long weekend - Tennyson came down with Hand, Foot, Mouth disease AGAIN! In addition to that he's been unbelievably fussy and clingy because he's actually getting his first tooth. Yes, we are sure this time. It's about to pop through his swollen little gums. So I haven't been able to have kids in here this week because HF&M is highly contagious. Unfortunately no kids means lost income. (I don't think it's fair for the parents to pay if my child is ill.) I have to admit though that I am really enjoying having Mommy and Tennyson time, even though he's out of sorts, it's still precious to have just him to take care of and no one else for a few days.

After a visit to the pediatrician yesterday, I may get kids back in here tomorrow or Friday depending on how Tennyson is doing. We were supposed to go to a college friend's wedding this weekend in PA, but that's not happening now for numerous reasons. I am sad to miss it, but all plans are tentative with a little one!

Tennyson is carrying around a set of headphones while I type. I don't know why, but it's really cute! The dryer stopped and there's another load in the washer that needs to be transferred. And the dishwasher still hasn't been emptied........I was hoping to take another nap this afternoon, but housework always takes precedence in my book. Isn't that a shame?

Uh oh, better go. Tennyson is now chewing on the cord to the headphones. "Uh, sweet boy. Daddy might not want you to do that."