Baby Boy is 6 Months Old!

Okay, Raleigh is actually 7 months by now, but hey, at least I am finally getting around to documenting his half-birthday, right? I have so much I could say about my Little BOL (One of my nicknames for him is Ball of Love). Raleigh rolled over at 4 months or so and now he is most definitely on the move. He's not crawling yet, but he has gotten his knees up under himself a few times. (Yikes!) He is one determined little man though. If he sees something he wants he WILL find a way to get it! Raleigh has been known to roll repeatedly across the living room just to get his sweet, little hands on one of big brother's trains! It's crazy how fast and precise his rolling has become! You can often hear us say, "How did you get all the way over there?"

Raleigh is still the happiest baby! Since birth he's just been this content, laid-back little dude. He's so alert and really notices new surroundings and people. It's so cute to watch him watch people. And just recently Tennyson and he have really starting interacting! Oh how I love it! Tennyson jumps around the room and then pretends to fall down and Raleigh just bursts into laughter. I tell you, sometimes I think I might explode from the cuteness!

At Raleigh's 6 month appointment he weighed 14 lbs. 5 oz. (5th percentile) and was 26.5 inches l
long (50th percentile). In fact the nurse measured him three times because she could not believe he had grown over 2 inches in 2 months. Looks like he'll be taking after Mommy in the height department, too! The peditrician explained that the growth charts don't really make alotments for preemies, but he was pleased to see that even though Raleigh is small he is gaining weight nicely.

This is especially good to know since he's still living solely off me. The few times we tried to give him a bottle he steadfastly refused. And I did make a couple attempts at rice cereal, but he was also less than enthusiastic about it. I figure there's no rules about when to introduce solids, so I am not going to stress about it. He'll eat it when he's ready.

Raleigh still loves to chew on his toes, especially when socks are present. And his determined little spirit is something I hope he doesn't lose. Here are some photos I took during a little photo shoot of my littlest man, and a few others since then.

His eyes really are that blue.

Loves the toes!

Baby feet

One of his many expressions

So content

Lookin' a little pouty.

"Do I have to try it, Mommy?"

"But my hand tastes better."

"Yeah, I'm not crazy about this organic rice stuff."

A Heavy End to an Otherwise Wonderful Christmas

This past Christmas was an amazing time with my 24 member family. We laughed, played games, ate, and just really enjoyed being in each other's company. On the last night we were all together (December 27th) we all headed to my sister's house in Broadway for a family picture and dinner. After the picture I went upstairs to feed Raleigh. My sister, Dawn, came in and said Lynley had an announcement to make. Normally that means a pregnancy, but seeing as my sister was crying I knew that wasn't it something good.

By the time I got out in to the living room everyone was gathered around listening to my sister, Lynley, with my brother-in-law, Dan, right beside her. His hand was on her back and he was looking down. I heard things like "surgery," "lump," and "doctors." For a second I didn't comprehend what was going on. Was it her? Where was the lump? What did it mean?

Taken after "the announcement."

They still look good, even with puffy eyes!

I don't really need to give all the details here, but Dan discovered a lump during yoga, of all things, around December 10th and went to the doctor right away. They soon were doing surgery to remove swollen lymph nodes in his neck. (My brother, Cameron, noticed the scar and asked Dan about it, somewhat prompting Lynley and Dan to share with the family what was going on.) By this point there had already been lots of tests, scans, and appointments. When Lynley was done talking I think everyone was stunned and in tears and then.......and then we all got up and hugged them, hugged each other. Just long, meaningful hugs. Some of us prayed for them. It was a very heavy moment. So very different from different from the same day last year when we announced to my family that we were expecting Raleigh.

The next day Lynley and Dan headed back to PA for a late afternoon doctor's appointment. They called while the rest of us were having dinner and told us that the doctors had confirmed what we were all fearing - cancer. Dan was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkins Lymphoma. It was so surreal because Dan is only 30 and he and Lynley are hand's down the healthiest people we know. Thankfully since Dan is a pre-med student at Penn State he has been getting the royal treatment! So we are so happy about that.

It still seems so surreal. So unfair that Dan has to go through this. I can't tell you how my heart aches for them. As of now Dan has done 4 of his 8 chemo treatments. He's dealt with "fire tongue," fatigue, nausea, and just recently hair loss. And in May he'll do 2-3 weeks of radiation. Though his prognosis is extremely good he (and Lynley) still weigh heavy on our hearts and our minds throughout the day. So if you could please, please remember to pray for them I know they would appreciate it. And if you want to follow along on their journey to kick cancer Dan's Caring Bridge website is: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/teamlapp .

We look forward to the day he is cancer free....and we know that will be soon!

Christmas~ Part 2

Let's see if I can actually find the time to sit and get caught up on my blog. Since I am so far behind (Raleigh is 7 months old I haven't even done a 6 month post for him!) I'll just post a few photos from Christmas that I wanted to share.

An overhead view of most of my family while my Dad

read a devotion before Christmas dinner (12.26.09)

My siblings. Yeah, we're ridiculous!


We went to the Harrisonburg Children's Museum on the 26th with my brother, Kyrce, and his family. Here's a fuzzy, yet adorable, photo of Tennyson.

Racing Daddy

Riding the John Deere

Weighing vegetables

My nephew, Holden (3), and my niece, Bethany (3), eating bananas. I love the guilty look!

My sister-in-law, Maureen, and Raleigh (5 months).

Christmas ~ Part 1

In the craziness of moving 6 days beforehand, Christmas was almost forgotten. ;-) Okay not really. But we put unpacking on hold and spent 4 days wonderful, special days with my family. Lynley and Dan came in to town on Christmas Eve and Kyrce and his family got here late on Christmas day.

Tom and I opened presents first thing that morning with the boys before heading over to my parents'. Tennyson was much more excited this year and we were impressed with how he took the time to open each present and study it before moving on to the next one. He especially loved his Thomas the Tank Engine wall stickers, sheets, and trains. He also loved all his Disney stuffed animals from Nana Joan, Tom's mom. Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Winnie the Pooh, and Pluto sit on his bed every night.

My family loves to play games!

The best part of the photo is Cameron with a tie around his head.

I just wanted to post this adorable photo of Raleigh.

It looks like he's blowing a kiss!

The chaos of opening presents

Memories

It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home.
~Author Unknown

On December 18th we were forced to move from the only home Tom and I had shared together since being married in June 2004. Our landlord got a divorce last year and decided to sell the townhouse (or rather, he had to sell it), so we had no choice but to move. Even though we were renters we cared for it like it was our own home.

I was especially sad to leave since I had lived in that home longer than I had lived anywhere in my whole life. So to say I was emotionally attached to it is an understatement. After only 5 weeks notice with Thanksgiving and Christmas in there, packing (mostly by myself), cleaning, etc. we moved the day before the blizzard hit. We wanted to be in our new place by Christmas so we could enjoy the holiday and then go back and clean.

So on January 2nd Tom and I said a very tearful good-bye to our first home. As we shut the door for the last time I was flooded with memories. Like coming back from our honeymoon, finding it decorated by friends and filled with all the wedding presents. I remembered all the good times Tom and I shared there before becoming parents. I relived bringing Tennyson home from the hospital and all the amazing life he gave to that house, learning to walk, running through the kitchen and hearing his little feet smack the floor, leaving fingerprints on the back door, and playing in the sprinkler in the backyard. And more recently I pictured again walking through the front door with little Raleigh.

It just broke our hearts to leave it, but life goes on. On the upside, we are in a more convenient location with a 3rd bedroom. But we miss the roominess of the old place, the big backyard, and our neighbors. However, we are optimistically looking forward to all the precious memories we will make in our new place. Afterall, home is where you are surrounded by the ones you love and not the house itself.

The Last Snow at Pointe Drive

The last decent snowfall we got while living at our old home on Pointe Drive was December 5th (other than Moving Day), so the next day I took Tennyson out to play in it. (Tom was working in Harper's Ferry that day.) Now earlier in the year Tennyson did not enjoy the cold, white stuff, but now that he's older he really loved it! The only way I could get him to go back inside was to bribe him with hot chocolate.

Here are some of the priceless pix from that day:

I love the zig-zag path he made.

At the woods' edge, looking for deer.