C Lu @ 9 Months

 

Nine Months.

Girlfriend, 

You have officially been out of my tummy and in my arms the same amount of time it took to cook you in my belly.  When I was pregnant with you, nine months felt like forever.  The waiting was treacherous!  But somehow in my arms, I have blinked and here we are.  I have treasured each moment, each day, each month.  But slow it down already. Ummmm K, pumpkin.

This past month you celebrated your first Christmas and sailed into your first new year.  You are a hefty (almost) 18 pounds and 27 inches.  You got the doctors seal of approval and no shots at this appointment!  You have also gained a backbone...a big one at that.  You wrestle and fight your brothers (and dad & I too) for whatever it is that you want.  You are a feisty little thing.  We love it and we love you.  Your "growls" and giggles are our favorites.  Please don't sprint to "1".  Walk slowly.  In the mean time I am sure you will literally learn to walk.  And I will take as much time as I can to take in your sweet baby scent and snuggles while they are right in front of me.

You crashed the other day while snacking on Cheerios right in your seat.  This is one of our favorite shots of you from the month.

And in no time at all, you were back and ready to rock!  

To MANY many MANY more precious shots ahead.

x o x o,

MoM

Last One: Richard Christmas

We got a great end to a wonderful holiday season at my parents house the weekend after Christmas!  We all spent the night there and got an "adults only" lunch at Hugos.  We got in some good R & R and had a blast just hanging out.

The kiddos all got a "ticket to ride" 

and Aunt Ali provided the hit of the night, ninja turtles weapons, ha!  Every little boys dream!

There was lots of snuggles and smiles and a lot of great family time.  And Suz sets a beautiful table, does she not??!!??

Perfect way to end the holidays.  I felt a huge weight in my stomach when I realized that Christmas was over.  It was such a special time with all three kids and I know that by next year they will all be bigger and life will be in a new place.  I did savor and enjoy this one as much as I could.  It was memory maker for sure and we will treasure them for years to come!

Just Us.

What a difference a year makes....

Me & C in front of the tree

12/24/11

Me & C

12/25/12

When we got back from Nebraska Christmas Day night we got on jammies and rallied up to celebrate with just our little clan.  Ryan and I were so excited to give the boys some of their most desired requests and I couldn't wait to open some girlie gifts too.  Ninja turtles and Jake and the Never Land Pirates won big on our night!

And we opened a tea set and a DOLL!!!!

L.O.V.E. them so very much.

So blessed to celebrate with this little crew.  What a gift they are!

Nebraska Christmas

I know I have posted excessive amounts of Christmas photos already but there are more.  Our whole trip to Nebraska, our Christmas & Christmas with my side are still on the docket.  As I am putting these blogs together I am reminded at how blessed we truly are to have so many special people in our lives to celebrate with and make our kids feel so loved and so special.  And with that...here are some snap shots of our family-friends-joy-fest!

We started out our trip on a not so joy filled note as we made a 7 hour trip in a little over 10 icy, scream filled, semi trechorious hours.  It was the low point of the trip.  But we made it in one piece at like 3 am and kicked off our Christmas weekend.

We popped out of bed the next morning and started in on a tour of friends and family that began in Ashland...

where we of course met up with Grandpa Sapp out plowing the streets and met up with...

my beloved teaching partners in 2nd grade crime, Carolynn and Nancy.  Without their TLC & friendship I would never have made it through my first years of teaching.  They are true treasures!  Then we headed to the Richard family Christmas out in Ceresco, which I sadly got no pictures at!  Brad and LuAnn had a most delicous dinner with all the Richard favorites!  It was awesome to see everybody!  We headed back to Omaha after that, for a reunion with some of our favorite delights from the college days!  It was AWESOME to see all these faces and there were a few more that didn't make it in the photos.  We "laughed and caught up and soaked up the smiles of our buddies" the night away.  It was truly a highlight of the Christmas season for Ry and I! 

 

We got in some great down time at Grandma and Grandpa Eccleston's house over our few days too.  The kids played with cousin Hudson and the boys played with their Uncles, always a wild time!  

  

And snuggled with their Aunties too!

Christmas Eve we spent at our both our Moms, Mom & Dads house...a Christmas Eve tradition for both sides!  Here's the whole clan to date!  And, you may notice a new & beautiful blonde in the pic and that is our soon to be sister in law, Amber!  Jason got engaged this Fall and they are getting married in May!  We are so excited to have her!

We had a great time at G & G Benne's house with all the extend fam...

 

some cousin Melissa love

the Greats with the kiddos

and the reading of the Christmas story starring all the great grandkids in costume!

We then headed back to Ashland for Christmas at the Sapps...

I quickly forced the kids to take this one shot of just our family on my phone and they were officialy DONE with pictures, so there aren't any more from this night, I know, I know

...you're feeling low on pictures.

But we had a BLAST with the cousins and MAX, who is always a highlight for my boys!

Then we got the "children all nestled snug in their beds" and drifted off in a Christmas daze ourselves.  In the morning we woke to a lot of Christmas JOY.  With these 3, how can there not be:)!

There was playing and eating and packing up.  And some snuggles from one Lucille to the other...

And then we had to head home, but we tried not to be too sad, because there was more fun to come!!!

Merry Christmas 2012 Card

Here's a few peeps at our Christmas Card Photo shoot...

all things considered, we did pretty good!!!  Love that they captured us right where we're at!

and in tradition the letter is at the bottom!

"It is a miracle if you can find true friends, and it is a miracle if you have enough food to eat, and it is a miracle if you get to spend your days and evenings doing whatever it is you like to do, and the holiday season - like all the other seasons - is a good time not only to tell stories of miracles, but to think about the miracles in your own life, and to be grateful for them."

-Lemmony Snicket

Reminders are essential for me.  There are days when I fell like I should write myself a post-it to make sure I brush my teeth and/or hair.  And when I saw this quote in a magazine this fall it filled up my heart until it overflowed with reminders of the miracles our life is composed of.  It’s not hard in the thick of things to get bogged down by the “daily-ness” of everyday.  Do the dishes, go to work, change diapers, make meals, clean up toys, REPEAT.  But even so, Ry and I always fall exhausted onto the couch at the end of each day and exchange funny stories & hilarious moments & overwhelming adoration that we have for our little crew and the life that we share with them.  Even in the days that seem normal, miracles spring up, God is with us.

2012 has been full and fun and is gone too fast.  There are lots of everyday miracles to be grateful for & stories to tell.  In a nutshell:  Griffin is becoming quite the big kid.  He’s whizzing through his ABCs and 123s at school and loves it!  His one-liners leave us in stitches and his zest for life makes us shake our head and smile.  Sawyer (Beanie) is a 2-year-old tornado (if you’ve had a 2 year old, then you know what we mean).  He’s like a tiny trained UFC Fighter (who Ryan says throws a mean right hook) & doesn’t take a challenge lightly.  Keeping up with Griffy is a big job, but somebody has got to do it.  Luckily, his tender heart and adorable chitchat keep our hearts melted & our frustration at bay.  Our BIG (12 LBS 2 OZ BIG) addition this year arrived in April. Crosbi Lucille (Our little C Lu) and her gappy grin, squeally giggles, and the explosion of tiny pink things topped with bows truly sums up the miracles in our family this year.  Three healthy & happy babies all entrusted to us couldn’t feel more miraculous (and thoroughly exhausting) but miraculous nonetheless! And that brings us to Ryan & I.  We are happy & usually covered in snot or drool.  We like to run so we have an excuse to eat something smothered in chocolate.  We celebrated 30^th birthdays & 7 years of wedded bliss & still love each other a lot.  We do lots of laughing & sometimes cry (ok, I sometimes cry).  We have 3 daily reminders of God’s goodness in the form of tiny children, who can at any point in the night, end up in our bed. How beautiful it is to see the family God has laid out before us.

 We hope that this season is full of sweet & miraculous reminders. Reminders of everyday miracles & the only one that changes everything, the birth of our Lord & Savior!  Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

We love you!

Ryan, Abbi, Griffy, Beanie & C Lu