Celebrating Brooks's 3rd!

We had a great weekend! It was all about Brooks. On Friday night we celebrated his birthday as a family. After cooking cheeseburger dip all day, he decides he does not want that and wants McDonalds. Obviously, on their birthday, they get whatever they want. I have a "You are Special" plate that the birthday boy/girl eats on, so he still did that!


After eating cake, Brooks opened his presents. Needless to say, he hit the jackpot.


I am shocked we ever got him to fall asleep, but once he did, I went to work preparing for his birthday party on Saturday. After all invites were sent out, Brooks informed Rick and me he wanted to have it at the church. Guess what? What birthday boy wants, he gets! I was a little worried this morning after getting a call that a child that was supposed to come was sick. Two more were already sick. Luckily, everyone else showed up. Since everyone was starving, lunch came first!



Once we filled our bellies, it was craft time. I had a beach bucket for each kid and tons of stuff to decorate them with like stickers, markers, etc. They seemed to enjoy it. After making their buckets, we went outside to play a few rounds with a pinata and fill our buckets with candy!

After that, more cake! My son has suddenly decided he has an aversion to silverware, so he again ate cake with his fingers.


Everyone knows what follows cake....PRESENTS!!! Brooks again hit the JACKPOT!


The party ended with free play on the playground. Abbie was the only one who came out not covered in dirt.


And since these two love to hug each other, they had to get a goodbye hug!


I had to include a picture of 2 of my favorite people in New York! It is hard to be so far away from family, but these two ladies filled in and helped me feel relaxed and on top of things!


Now is the crash from it all. After everyone got naps, Brooks is now playing with all of his toys.

Happy Birthday, My Little Man!

My baby is three today!! I cannot believe it!! Where has the time gone? As I was telling him his "birth story" last night, I was overcome with emotion and feeling like it was just yesterday. I remember how he was in utero. He would kick at precisely the same time every day for close to the same length of time. He was so routine and predictable. Then the delivery - what an easy, amazing experience. I went in to a scheduled induction the day before his due date. They gave me the drip, checked me, told me I was 3, that they would wait a few hours to check me again, knowing the process with Abbie was very slow. I did not want an early epidural with Brooks, because I wanted to "feel" the experience. Very soon after, I called the nurse in, telling her I think I had progressed a lot. She assured me that it was too quick but she would check anyway. Needless to say, I was a 7. We got that epidural in quickly! Not even 10 minutes later, she came back in to check me, but her check was visual - there was my buddy's head! My doc was in surgery, so she said I would have to just "hold tight". Yeah right! (: The doc hustled in and sat down. He said, just stay like you are. This baby is just coming out by himself. Doctor Moore put his hand on my belly and Brooks entered the world! Whew! I should have known his personality already - he likes predictable and routine. He is intense. He is an "I can do it all by myself" kind of guy! And he is so much more. Every day he makes me laugh; every day he makes my heart warm; every day he challenges me; every day he inspires me. He is so verbal. He has an opinion about everything and likes to feel like he is in complete control at all times. He is so smart and perceptive! He has an opinion about what he should wear and is obsessed with shoes. I could not imagine life without him. Thank you God for entrusting this sweet soul to me! Happy 3rd birthday, sweet boy Brooks!

Time Movin'

I want another baby! I admit, the timing is off, but the time is tickin' too! I am praying about God's will and His timing, because it does not make sense.
Ok, on to another note, we had so much fun in the city last week. Christine and Emma came in to town, and we hit the city. Abbie was not feeling great, but she did not complain a bit! We hot my favorite restaurant, Tony's, watched Alice in 3D for $20 a ticket(I was shocked it was that it was that much more), went to M&M and Hershey stores, and walked around Times Square. The next morning we went to a play in Greenwich Village, which was so fun! I have not been to Greenwich Village much, but I have decided I want to hit it more in the future trips. The musical was Alice in Wonderland. The girls loved it! Afterwards, Abbie insisted on telling Cinderella that she had her at home as a Barbie doll. The cast got a kick out of that.
I am so thankful for the friends I have here. After our experience in Texas, I am not quick or excited to make true friends in the church where Rick pastors. Due to the fact that there are hardly any Christians up here, it is not really an option to do otherwise! (: I am grateful for the friends who have made room in their lives for "one more."
Speaking of Austin, I can hardly believe it was a year ago that Rick sent in his resignation letter. I have mixed emotions. First, I am shocked at how much healing God has done in my heart through my experience here in NY. Second, I am so lucky to have the family I do. I remember throwing Brooks a birthday party at my Mom's house, and all my relatives came over. There is nothing like family to drown out ugliness. Brooks's birthday is coming up again, so it brings back memories of where I was and see God's hand in everything. I will not say I am "free" from the experience, but I am getting there. For the first time, I experienced God using the experience to enable me to minister to someone that I probably could not have otherwise. That felt good, really good!

A Big Look

Has it really been 3 months since my last post?!?!?! I have no idea how to cover the events of three months in one post. I guess what sums it up is God has been so good in the stepping stones He has given me to heal from the experience in Austin. I would be lying to say I have truly forgiven those few people, but I must say it doe snot define my life. Living in New York has been a blast, though it has not been without its challenges. Rick lost his brother and mother in a 6 month period, was in a car wreck, and had surgery. That being said, it is apparent that the spiritual warfare here is strong. That is because God is doing some great works here! We are seeing so many lives changed. Down south, going to church is the social norm. Living a Christian life is not necessarily the norm, but being a church attender is. Up here, you go against the norm if you are a follower of Christ. The challenges Christians face up here blow me away. Since we have been here, the church attendance has tripled, so that is very exciting to us as well as the church. Rick's friend, Mckelvie, has been leading worship, and that has been such a blessing! If anyone reading this is looking for potential mission trips for your youth or adults at your church, the fields up here are ripe for harvest, though the laborers are few. We have opportunities!
Witnessing is very different up here. There is such an aversion to Christianity and church up here, that the relationship foundation must be set very securely before the Gospel is presented. I work one night a week. I hate going out at night away from my family, but God has put the 2 ladies I train on my heart, and I know I am training them for more than earning a paycheck. God has partnered me with them for such a time as this. I pray regularly for opportunity and conversation, and He has been faithful.

I have loved exploring NYC so much. I hope to post pictures soon of places and stars I have encountered in NYC. It is a fascinating place that never grows old. I just discovered Shake Shack, an outdoor eatery right in Madison Square Garden. You stand in a long line to place your order at Window #1, wait to pick up your order at Window #2 and then find a tiny table to sit at and eat. I was soooo good. One of my best friends from college came up to the city, and she suggested we try it. I was shocked. Another fave is Grand Central. Most people think of the part of GS that is seen in movies - the huge lobby. Though that is beautiful, the bottom floor is my favorite. There are tons of walk up restaurants (like at the mall) and sit down places. Juniors has the BEST bakery of anywhere in NY. Times Square continues to fascinate me, especially at night. I feel like a child when I am there, so in awe of all the lights! When my little sis was here, my friend who works at FOX News took us on a tour. We sat in O'Reilly's chair and met Shep Smith(who had on more make up than Tammy Faye Baker). My favorite restaurant BY FAR in the city is Tony Dinapoli's. It is an Italian family style restaurant, and it is to DIE FOR! We live 40 miles north of the city, so the train system to get into the city is so convenient! We drive a couple miles to the train station (which happens to be right across the street from the church), hop on the train, and arrive at Grand Central an hour and twenty minutes later.
One of my best friends from SC is coming up next weekend with her daughter, and the gals are hitting the city. Abbie is thrilled about the girl's trip!Hopefully I will get a chance to blog this one, too!

Ok, Mamaw!

As I was talking to Mamaw, my grandmother, last night, I promised her I would not quit journaling. Since I lose any journals I actually write in, this has been my attempt at journaling. I have gotten so bad at taking the time to do it, so it is my goal to do it at least twice a week. In 20 years, I will be so glad I did it! To just track what life has been like for me, I am happy...genuinely, truly happy. My kids make me smile more than ever before. They play together so well. Brooks is my alpha, is bossy and wound tight, but he is SOOOOO MUCH FUN!! Everyone wants to be around him. Abbie is my gentle soul. She is compassionate, perceptive, and very calming. Though she does not have to be in charge and lets Brooks make a lot of the decisions, when she does not want to do something, she just doesn't. No fighting, kicking, screaming, just does not do it. They are a great match. She has taught Brooks how to exhibit compassion, and Brooks has taught her boldness.

As far as school goes, she is right where she needs to be. In the south, she received 60 minutes total of combined therapies- 2- 20 min speech sessions and 1- 20 min. Here in NY, she receives 300 minutes. YES!!! That is right - 300 minutes!!! 4-30 min private speech and 1-30 minute group speech, 3- 30 minute OT, and 2- 30 min PT. Unbelievable!! Her speech therapist is amazing. Abbie is developing and catching up. She still has a long way to go, but she is getting there. The speech therapist thinks Abbie's auditory processing disorder and ADD is foundational in her delay. She is relaying foundations that were laid incorrectly. Abbie's fine motor control and gross motor skills are improving as well. She can write an A on her own with no instruction, and it looks flawless!! Those of you with "typical" kids have no idea why that is huge, but it is!!! Her ADD meds have had a great impact on her performance. I am starting the process of looking for a neurologist up here. Please pray for success in finding one who is compassionate, patient, a good listener, and very learned!
Brooks loves to learn. He does Abbie's homework right with her. His obsession is cars, cars, cars, and trains! He is very into Barney. We are starting potty training after Christmas. He uses the potty on his own a lot, but he has never been required to, if that makes sense. Strong-willed does not even do his will justice. He has more of an iron clad will, so it should be interesting.
We have a terrific babysitter up here. Well, we have a couple, but I have one girl who watches them more than other. The kids ask if we can go out, so she can babysit. She adores my kids, so it makes us happy!
We were stuck on the side of the road on Sunday when thick sheets of ice covered the roads. Some people were stuck for three and four hours, so we were blessed with just one hour of delay. It was quite frightening. One woman was killed on the road where we were stuck. New Yorkers have said it was the worst experience they have ever had of ice/snow. I was somewhat relieved, because it means it probably won't happen again. I am making Emergency kits for our cars this week, in case something does happen again.

Moving through Thanksgiving

Well the Ledfords and Thanksgiving have both come and gone. Abbie got sick on Tuesday, so I was very anxious about our Thanksgiving plans. Our friends got in town at about midnight Wednesday night/Thursday morning. We crashed and then woke up early on Thanksgiving Day. Like the wonderful mother I was, I pumped Motrin into Abbie to bring her fever down and hit the city with our family and the Ledfords. For those that "dream" of coming to the parade in NYC, you see much better on tv. Despite the crowd and lack of view, our kids seemed to really enjoy it and be "along for the ride." We hit FAO Schwartz after watching the parade for about an hour or two. We had lunch, did a lot of walking, and then headed home while the Ledfords stayed a little longer. I am amazed at how well Abbie did and does every time in the city. She never tires out, even with 101 degree fever. She has been begging me to take her to Mamma Mia, so I may make a day out of that after Christmas.
Friday was when we were going to celebrate Thanksgiving.It was play day for Rick and Larry, while Leigh and I cooked...for SIX HOURS!!! To those out there who love cooking, this may sound fun, but to my "I would rather be socializing" self, this was not my idea of a perfect day. After dinner and dessert, Leigh and I hit Starbucks and stayed til midnight. That is my idea of a good time(:
Abbie is still sick...poor girl. We decorated the tree and house for Christmas, but I will talk about that in my next post after I download the pics.

Fall Fun in the City

Busy and fun times here in New York! We have been keeping very busy here. For Halloween, we had some friends form church over. Thanks to the help of two of my new friends, the party went very well. We decorated cookies, played games, and bobbed for donuts(more sanitary and softer than apples).



This pic is of one of our babysitters. She is AMAZING!!! The kids adore her!


We also had a great time watching Abbie perform at school. They did the Monster Mash! Then we had a little party in the classroom.






I had a friend come visit me a couple of weeks ago. Actually, she is one of my oldest and dearest friends who I have not seen in over 2 years. I would post pics of us, but I have promised to not post anything without her approval. Only for Jen! We went to see South Pacific, went shopping and got makeovers at Bergdorff Goodman (sp?), went to Madame Tussaud's and had fun with the wax figures!!


The next weekend was back to the city for The Rockettes! Since we live so close to NYC, we just hopped on the train that dropped us off at Grand Central Station. Brooks loved the train, and Abbie loved the Rockettes!




Afterwards, we went to Mars 2112, which is an outer space themed restaurant. When you get there, they give you a ticket, and you get in an elevator and go on a rocket ship ride up to "outer space." When you step off the ride, you are in a fully decorated restaurant that looks like outer space. There were a lot of parties going on, and balloons were everywhere. Brooks was not so happy that he did not get one. Fortunately, we had an amazing waiter who brought my kids balloons!


The boys were exhausted on the way home, but the girls were full of sunshine!




This next week will be exciting. Another one of my best friends is coming in with her family on Wednesday at 11 pm and is spending Thanksgiving with us!! I can hardly wait! We are taking the kids to the Macy's Day Parade on Thursday and are going to do the whole Thanksgiving dinner on Friday. I don't care what we do, as long as it includes the Ledfords.