30 Days of Giving Thanks: Day 16

Today I am thankful for Thanksgiving!  It seems a little cheesy but I LOVE everything about Thanksgiving.

I love the food... oh, how I love the food!  I can out-eat pretty much anyone at the Thanksgiving table.  Turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, green beans... then comes the pies!  Cheesecake, pumpkin pie, or pumpkin cheesecake.  I really love baking for Thanksgiving probably as much if not more than consuming all of the yummy food!

I think I might need to bust out my maternity pants for the meal....

I love the fact that Thanksgiving brings people together for a holiday without any expectations except to enjoy a meal together.  It's not like the Christmas holiday when most people do the gift exchange.  I think sometimes that can take away from one of the best parts of the holidays... the people.  Friends, family, whoever you get together with for Thanksgiving: remember to enjoy the fellowship!

30 Days of Giving Thanks: Day 5

I know, I know... I've already missed 2 days.  Oops.  The weekend really got away from me apparently... you would think I would actually be able to blog over the weekend?!

Today's post is how thankful I am to have such an amazing support system.  I've already posted about my husband, but this is a more general post about my/our support system.  They say it takes a village to raise a child, and I would agree!  Both my husband & I work full-time outside of the home.  My mom watches the boys when we are at work and she is truly a huge blessing to us!  There are days that I get really down about not being able to be at home with my boys, but they have such a great time with Grandma during the day!  Plus, getting to see my mom on a daily basis is awesome!

Both sets of our parents will watch the boys on the occasional weekend evening so Matt and I can have a date night.  I think that Matt and I taking time as a couple is very important for our kids to learn what it may take to make marriage work.  How else will they have successful marriages in the future (if that is their vocation) if they do not have parents leading by example?

As a professional I also sometimes have "extra-curricular" activities in which I participate.  I am the chair of the local section of American Chemical Society for 2012 (yes, I am somewhat counting down the days) and tomorrow I will be leaving for a business trip for a training course.  I continually toy with the idea of going back to school for a graduate degree, and even though I haven't yet found a program that fits what I want to do, my family is extremely supportive.

With having such an amazing support system to lean on to help raise my wonderful kids, I constantly hope and pray that I do not ask too much of those around me.  I understand and appreciate how much our family does for us and hope to never take advantage of their generosity.

I Wore my Turkey-Eating Pants

One major benefit of having a baby just 4 weeks before Thanksgiving... two words: maternity pants!

The Bonds of Brotherhood

It has been amazing to watch the love between Jack and Christopher grow over the past couple of weeks!  I am so thankful for how easy of a transition from one child to two has been... the instant connection for Jack to his baby brother has been awesome!

Jack talking to his baby brother... he loves to lay on the ground with Christopher when he's getting some "wiggle time"!

Not to say he doesn't get a little jealous, but only when Daddy's getting some Christopher time.  (Jack is a major Daddy's boy.)

Christopher "enjoying" tummy time... and though you can't tell, he's actually lifting his head a decent bit and in this picture he was actually swinging his legs as if he were trying to roll over... I know he wasn't but I wouldn't be surprised if he did it earlier than we expect!

A quick weight stat from Christopher's 12 day check-up (it was just a weight check even though he was already over his birth-weight at 5 days), he was at 7 pounds 6.5 ounces which is 13 ounces in one week!  He seems to be a very "efficient" nurser... he doesn't nurse very long, but he's obviously gaining a lot plenty of weight so he's getting what he needs!  It seems kind of strange to me simply because Jack was still nursing for nearly 40 minutes every 2 hours at this point... just goes to show how different babies can be!

Thank you Veterans!

Today's thanksgiving post is for all of those who have ever or are currently serving in the armed forces!

A special thank you goes to my cousin and his wife who are currently serving our country!