My Heart

 In one week this boy has changed so much. He is smiling at his parents....not just that vacant newborn stare. He interacts with them. He is happy (almost) all the time. He was tongue tied for the first three days of his life. After they took care of that he was able to eat better and he just became absolutely content. He is beautiful and sweet and probably the most amazing thing I have ever seen. I cannot wait to hold this little angel!!! See you soon, Michael!!!

Michael James Reader

Monday,  May 20, 2013 at 3:30 p.m. the most perfect little boy was born. Weighing in at 6 lbs. 13 oz and measuring 20 inches long he is smaller than we thought he'd be. 

Michael is a name both Abby and Kevin have always loved. When Kevin would play house with Jo his name was always Michael. It is funny that he found someone who loves the name as much as he does. James is a family name. Kevin and Abby's dads are both James and so is Abby's brother. This boy is destined for great things. (He already loves his blanket!!)

Lots of dark hair and a soft cry are the first things Kev and Abby noticed about their son. When Kevin called after Michael had been born I could tell he was a changed man. There was a reverence to his voice, he had witnessed a miracle and he knew it.

My Dad and Zeffie were first on the scene. They are such cute GREAT-GRANDPARENTS (so funny to think about). It is funny to think of myself as a grandma now. My grandma had such an impact on my life...and my Mom was the most amazing grandma ever. In the history of ever. She would play for hours on the floor with her grandkids. She didn't spend a ton of money on them. She invested her time. I want to be THAT grandma. The muffin baking, truck rolling, sprinkler running grandma. Grandma Honey. That will be me.

My sweet friend and work out buddy brought me the most thoughtful gift. Balloons, flowers and a couple outfits for Michael all wrapped in big blue bows. I get so emotional just thinking about it. Kevin had called me before I headed to the gym to let me know that they were headed to the hospital. Katrina had to listen to me go on and on about my excitement.

Months ago I had been getting a nudge from my loving Heavenly Father letting me know that if I wanted the results from the gym that I had been praying for, I'd better be prepared to get there early. Katrina called me and asked if I needed a work out partner at the very early hour of 5 a.m. At first I said no....then remembering my prayers, I called her back. She is such a great work-out buddy. I like going at 5 now and I know she is a big reason why.

She has 4 sons at home and loves them dearly. She knew it was hard for me to not be there with Kevin but admired me for my restraint. I wanted to give them a couple weeks to themselves to get used to their new addition and adjust to being a family. I will visit soon...but this time is sacred and I want them to be able to enjoy every minute without having to entertain guests.

So there it is, the biggest new of my entire year. I'll have more pictures soon. Kevin and Abby have been so sweet and generous with the pictures they have sent. We have even oovooed and facetimed a bit. I love technology. It makes the distance feel smaller for a bit. This new little man has my heart. This has got to be the coolest thing ever.

Mother's Day Flowers

I love flowers. I love their bright colors and fresh scent (some of them don't smell so good I have discovered). Cut flowers in a vase make me a little sad though. They die. Then I feel guilty for throwing them out. And they aren't cheap.

Like a lot of the country, our spring was slow getting started. It worked out well though. My tree flowered for Mother's Day. Not my favorite of days...even before my Mom passed. I had a really good Mother's Day last year. We had Jo's high school graduation to attend and it was an amazing day. This year, neither of my kids were home. Big bummer day.

Normally I am a glass is half full kind of gal. So I focused on all the positives in my life and just opened myself to all the feelings that came that day. Lots of good feelings; gratitude, love, appreciation. Some not fun emotions crept in as well. I let them stay as long as they needed to be there, and then tried to focus on the happy again.

My life is full of happy. My sweet husband who loves me for who I am. My amazing kids. I am honored to be their Mama. This new grandson of mine. (Michael was born yesterday, pictures to come). A plethora of friends. I am so truly blessed.

So, it came and it went...that Hallmark holiday known as Mother's Day. We should be thankful for and appreciate all that our Mother's do and have done for us every day. But since we can only buy cards once a year....but I digress. Happy is what we need to focus on. Terrible things are happening in our world right now. We all need to take a minute every day and focus on the happy.

If not now, when?

All But Done

Here it is. The before and after...with the new curtains!! I am so excited to have this project finished...as finished as any project really is in my house.

Notice that cute boy sitting on the couch? He is thinking to himself, "Hhmmmm, I think this room needs a new color." And he was so right.

Enter a paint crew of two. Took them the better part of one day to do the walls. Awesome!

See that cute boy on the couch? He is thinking to himself, "Wow. Why didn't I think to hire someone to this before?" I wondered the same thing cute boy!!

It also took the better part of one day to do the ceiling and the accent wall. Three coats of paint later, they were done. (Notice the light over the kitchen table....)

I changed a few things around. Added a few...left some off...but my favorite additions are the new curtains. I found them on Etsy after searching every curtain site Google threw at me. They are lovely. As I was putting stuff back on the walls, I noticed that most of my stuff was red and gray and black. I panicked a bit. I didn't want to get locked in. I love color. It makes me happy. So when I saw this fabric...it was love at first sight. It has no red in it...but it works. Very coordinated and fun without being all matchy matchy....LOVE!!

So now there is new paint which led to new curtains which will ultimately lead to a new light over the kitchen table. I am on the hunt. It is so exciting. 

Mother's Day is coming. Are you ready?

Very Random Thoughts and Happenings

I was on the elliptical machine at the gym this morning (early this morning) and a song I LOVE came on my iPod. I wanted to dance, but since that was impossible, due to having to hang on so as not to crash to the ground, I choreographed a dance number/music video to it in my head. I used the people working out around me as my back up dancers and dang....we were good! 

A couple mornings ago (again very early in the morning) I prayed that my friend L would have fast reflexes if she found herself in danger. Not something I would normally pray for. L's husband has early onset Alzheimer's and is getting more aggressive lately. She had a couple close calls and I just felt like a little prayer that direction couldn't hurt. Now I know that all my prayers don't go answered this directly....but here is her FB post from later that day. "OMG!!!!! I am still shaking!! If it hadn't been for quick reflexes on my part and on the part of the guy next to me, we all would have been toast! Stupid red mustang who cut out *right* in front of me while I was doing 55 mph!!! " Crazy! Right! I was so thankful that she was safe. What a weird morning.

On a completely unrelated note, Kevin and Abby are about 4 weeks from having their baby. I love getting phone calls from Kevin telling me about their latest doctor appointment or his general excitement. It is fun. He is nesting like nobody's business. It is awesome. I didn't know that expectant Daddies nested. He is so sweet. I really cannot wait to watch him be the best Daddy ever.