Change of Address. One more time.

I have to admit, I'm pretty impressed with myself.  When I thought up this blog idea in January 2011, I wasn't really sure if I'd we'd be able to keep it up all year long.  A year's worth of letters was quite a goal for me us!  And I we did it - hooray!  :)

After having given up my own voice for three years now, however, I'm ready to write for myself again.  So I say goodbye to this blog address and hello to an old, familiar one: www.justaneverydaylove.blogspot.com  Feel free to continue to follow the ins and outs of our simple, everyday love at our old/new address.  I have no idea what God has in store for our family in 2012, but I look forward to sharing it with all of you...

To a new year and fresh start,
Shara

Merry Christmas!

Dear Jude & Emily,

This year we took full advantage of all that the Christmas season has to offer!  From train rides, Christmas stories and baking to Christmas lights, Santa, candlelight carols, and gift giving ~ this year we did it all and made so many fun family memories!

Here are those memories in picture form...  Enjoy!

Houston...

...on the plane...



...and in Arizona...



Merry Christmas, Jude and Emily!  What a joy it was to celebrate our Savior's birth with our own dear family!

Love you like a year full of precious memories,

Mommy and Daddy



Jude turns THREE!

Dear Jude,

I cannot believe you are three years old!  Somehow the days are passing faster and faster for your mama, and I feel like I'm barely able to keep up with everything you're doing these days.  But I love our crazy, fast-paced day-to-day life, and I am thrilled that I get to spend my days playing with, teaching, learning from, and enjoying you! 

 

 

At 3 years old some things I want to remember about you are...

 

 

Dimensions: 38 inches tall (55th %), 36 pounds (85th %)

Size: 3T for clothing, 10 (or 10 and 1/2) for shoes

Favorite songs: Alphabet Song, Jesus Loves Me, Grace Flows Down (Amazing Grace), Zacchaeus Was a Wee Little Man, Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Favorite books: any Bible story (but especially Zacchaeus), Just Grandpa and Me, Night-Night Blessings, all of your "Caillou" books, Five Little Kittens

Favorite shows & movies: Toy Story, Thomas the Train, Caillou, Special Agent Oso

Favorite things to do: Play at the park, ride your tricycle and Hot Wheels, play hide & seek, read books, sing, help me in the kitchen, and jump and run anywhere and everywhere!

 

 

You are also becoming quite the conversationalist and say some of the cutest things we've ever heard.  And as is the case with most three-year-olds, your favorite question is "Why?"  Although it can drive me crazy some days, I adore your hunger for learning about the world you live in!   

Your birthday celebration started on Thanksgiving Day, when you woke up to find a new kitchen and work bench in the playroom!  Daddy had a lot of fun showing you how to use the power saw and drill.

Then we went to Papi and Nana's house to celebrate Thanksiving AND your birthday!

"Thomas the Train" for the theme for the day, and you were blessed with so many wonderful gifts from family near and far!

You also had a ton of fun playing with the train "village" your Papi constructed just for you, complete with stops at Lake Emily, Jude's Zoo of Exotic Animals, The Jude Ranch, Alaska & the North Pole, Bethlehem, a Train Wash, the ocean, desert, and a Train Depot.  It's quite a train ride!

Then that weekend you had one more present for your transition from toddler to big boy....

Your crib turned a big boy bed!

We had a wonderful day of celebrating YOU, sweet Jude, and thanking God for the wonderful gift he gave us just three years ago!  Your kind and loving heart is a blessing to us each and every day, and we love you very, very much!!  Happy 3rd Birthday!!!

 

Love you like a bowl full of jellybeans {another one of your favorites},

Mommy

Time flies!

Dear family,

Wow, this has been a busy two months!  So busy that we completely forgot to keep up with our letters to each other!!  But the silence has ended, and now we're back to fill in the blanks.  I hope you enjoy reading about the conclusion of our year; I'll do my best to make it a real page turner! 

Love you like Christmas morning,

Mommy

Once upon a potty...

Dear Jude,

Once upon a time there lived a little boy who woke up one crisp Saturday morning in November and was told that today his new friend, Monkey, was going to learn to use the potty!  The little boy very patiently taught Monkey all of the steps involved and even read him stories while he "tried." 

And when Monkey was successful at using the potty, he earned a potty party, getting to choose a treat cup (filled with either M&M's or fruit snacks) and a toy from the prize bag!

{The little boy enjoyed this part as much as Monkey did!} 

 After lunch and naptime it was the little boy's turn to learn to use the potty.

He had a lot of fun looking at the toys in the prize bag...

Coloring {while his mother made sure he stayed very hydrated with juice and water}...



 

And playing all day long in his big boy undies {on the floor of course}.

And do you know what happened?

The charming little boy learned to use the big boy potty!!!



There were several accidents along the way - and several loads of laundry washed and dried and washed and dried - but the little boy and his mother persevered {and purchased more pairs of pants}, and after two weeks of hard work the mother declared that the little boy was...

...{somewhat officially}...

POTTY TRAINED!!

The little boy felt great pride in wearing his big boy undies, and his mother felt a great sense of accomplishment that she had simply survived.  Her bathrooms were now adorned with sticker charts, step stools, potty seats, and Clorox wipes.  But the chubby cheeked smile of her oh-so-proud son made it all okay.  And totally worth it. 

Love you like elastic pants,

Mommy