One Year Old!

I interrupt this blogging break to make a very special announcement...


Gabrielle Grace turned one year old today!
I can hardly believe it. Where has the time gone???

Dear Gabby Girl,

You are the sweetest ever. You are full of kisses ALL the time. When you plant one, you give a big "mmmm...smooch" sound. It's your favorite thing to do when I come in to get you from a nap. We take turns kissing your purple hippo and your little lamby. You are most definitely my kissing girl (you must take after Daddy).


You've expanded your vocabulary quite a bit... mama, dada, more, all done, hi, bye bye, nurses, button, zipper, nose, mouth, no, night night, good girl, uh-oh, bless you. You are so expressive - always conversing with your toys and expressing your delight as you explore new things. I love when you point your finger and say "oh" with your lips all puckered up. It's a classic Gabrielle look.


You are also quite sassy and expressive in your frustration. You must take after mommy with that one. I hope we survive your teenage years. You have no qualms about throwing a full-on, back-arching, screaming temper tantrum when you don't get your way. Thanks for the public display at Verizon the other day. It was NOT awesome. I am praying that God will help me to guide that strong will toward His purposes.


You LOVE the men in your life. Daddy is the bomb! You cry when he leaves for work and you love to play airplane with him. Samuel is your buddy and you certainly hold your own with him. Heck, you wrestle him to the ground and you love it!


Aunt Linda said you were the happiest baby she's ever seen. You really are chipper when nothing's ailing you. Smiling all the time!


Some of your favorite things... singing the itsy bitsy spider or pat-a-cake, fake sneezing or yawning, critiquing Samuel's paintings on the easle, tearing paper, reading Good Night Gorilla, the ball-bopper, cruising around with your walker, singing in the microphone and banging just about everything.


I'm sure all parents say this about their kids, but you are quite bright...really! You pick things up really quickly. You love to mimick talking on the phone, putting on lotion, taking your temperature, feeding adults, making car sounds while playing matchbox cars with your brother and brushing your hair.


Gabrielle, you have a big personality and with it you bring big joy to our family. You make me smile and laugh more than I could have imagined. Everyday I think to myself, "I'm so happy we get to keep her!" What a precious gift you are. I love you, my big baby girl!

-Mama-

Just a few things

Just a few things that have been consuming my time.... traveling husband, stomach flu, a visit to the ER (see past tweets), a three year old with an attitude, a baby who's starting to walk, paperwork, still unpacking, etc.

I'll be back sometime. I promise.

Oh and please leave a brief comment so I can link back to your blog. My blog list vanished during the blog make over and I've got to recreate it from scratch. Thanks!!!

Breaking bread

Forgot to share this Samuel tidbit with you...

We were having canned soup and toast for dinner one night last week. I know, I know... a culinary delight. Samuel was eating his toast, broke it in half and looked up at me and said, "This is my body, broken for you. Eat it and when I die it will be in my tummy."

I guess the Easter Book we've been reading has really made an impact.

Praying for Stellan

Baby Stellan's surgery has begun as I write this. For those of you who do not read MckMama's blog let me give you a brief update. Stellan has a very serious and rare heart condition which was found while he was in utero. He was not supposed to make it into this world but by God's will he is alive. Now a few months later he fighting for his life.

His surgery is very complicated and has very significant risks. These are MckMama's specific prayer requests. Would you please take time today to pray for this family? It really does make a difference.

Would you pray that Dr. A will have wisdom as to if he should move forward with the ablation after the esophageal study? If he does move forward, would you pray that he will have clarity of mind as far as how aggressive to be with the ablation in order to fix Stellan's problem without putting him at undue risk for complications. Would you pray that the tiny catheters the doctors use will not nick Stellan's coronary artery? Would you pray for peace for me and my husband? Would you pray that heart block will not occur during the surgery? Would you pray that the extra pathways Stellan has will be located and successfully destroyed? Will you pray that, if they need to go through his septum, that it will heal as it should? Would you pray that in the days after the surgery (In infants, coronary damage sometimes doesn't appear for up to three days, so we'll be here for the rest of the week at least it looks.) we will cling to Jesus and not to fear?

Get your Depends on!

So last night my hubby and I spent a little quality time on You Tube. It was the most fun we had in months - for real! And so it would only be the right thing for me to do but to pass the laughter along to you.

Check out Remi Gaillard when you need a little comic relief. This dude is crazy funny. Sometimes I wonder things like, what would happen if I showed up to church in my bathrobe and my hair in a towel? Well, he's the kind of guy who thinks those things and actually has the guts to find out. My kind of humor.

Like I said in my title, get your Depends on because you might just pee your pants!





He's got tons of videos on You Tube. A few of them are mildly unsavory - most are just fine though - so use your discretion. Happy laughing!

Calling all squash lovers

If you are a veggie lover, you MUST try this recipe. It's been a favorite around here for a long time! I promise your taste buds will be in heaven!

Acorn Squash with Spinach Stuffing

3 small acorn squash
1 cup chopped celery
1 small onion chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
11 oz bag fresh baby spinach
1/2 tsp salt divided
6 Tbsp seasoned bread crumbs
2 Tbsp chopped walnuts or pecans
butter

Cut squash in half and discard seeds. Place squash, cut side down, in an ungreased baking pan. Fill pan with water to a depth of 1/2 inch. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.


Meanwhile, in a skillet saute celery and onions in olive oil until tender. Add spinach and 1/4 tsp salt. Cook and stir until spinach is wilted. (I like to sprinkle some extra bread crumbs into the spinach too.) In a bowl, combine the bread crumbs, walnuts or pecans, and remaining salt.


Drain water from baking pan. Turn squash cut side up. Stuff with spinach mixture. Sprinkle crumb mixture over top. Place a nice slab of butter on top of each. Bake an additional 15 minutes or until squash is tender.

Delicious!!!!

Wordless Wednesday - A Day at the Park