The Woman who gave JJ his VOICE

Today marks the end of a special time in our son's life.  Jameson turns 3 on Friday....so because of that, his services through First Steps have ended.  And sadly, because of that, we don't get to see Jenny, our speech therapist, every Monday morning anymore.

Jenny has been a gift to our son.  She has been a gift to me.
I am forever grateful for what she has given our Jameson.  A boy who at 2 years old was still silent...a "quiet spirit", we called him...but there was something in there....and SHE brought it out.

She told me about a book and when I read it, I learned about the value of Omega-3s in Jameson's diet - it gets his mind going each morning...which gets his words forming more and more.

We talked throughout the sessions...about JJ, about life, about kids, about parenting, about cooking, about school...she has become a friend.

More than anything, Jameson has blossomed. He is no longer silent, no longer a "quiet" spirit...he is alive, excited, happy, and he is understood.

What a gift Jenny has given our child - a voice!  a confidence!  a trust!  and we are forever thankful.

I look forward to the day we invite Jenny to Jameson's speech contest or play or singing performance...to celebrate how he's grown, who he's become, because she came alongside us and helped.
More than she'll ever know.  :)

THANK YOU JENNY!  We'll miss you!

Joe's First Day of School

Well, Joe has started his MBA at Butler University.
He is taking classes on Monday and Wednesday nights (accounting) and on Saturday mornings (organizational behavior).  Little did we know how easy this was going to be for him (so far!).

It's a tradition of mine to take "first day" photos with daddy, so here's his!  :)

Disney on Ice - Morgan's Birthday Experience!

What an amazing day this was! Morgan celebrated her 5th birthday just a few days after Christmas. We decided to make this year's gift be a "Experiential" birthday. So we celebrated on her big day with 2 of Morgan's dearest friends - Reese and her cousin Zani. Little did they know on that day, that they would also celebrate Morgan's birthday 23 days later at DISNEY ON ICE! We made 23 golden links (like Rapunzel's hair) at her party as a COUNTDOWN to the big day!

The day was finally here! Morgan got to rip her final golden link... On the way, we stopped for a snack - so they wouldn't be hungry AT the event! :) Me and 3 beautiful princesses drove to Conseco Fieldhouse for the show.

I must say, it was just AWESOME! I recorded some of the show in video, so I don't have pictures...and sometimes I was so amazed at what was happening (like 2 people flying high above the ice on golden felt!!!) that I didn't get photo or video....oh but the memories remain! We finished the night with dinner...our birthday princess wanted mac and cheese and pancakes...where else can you get that but...CRACKER BARREL!

It was a wonderful experience for all of us. I will treasure that special show with those 3 lovely girls.

2012 Resolutions

In 2011, I tried to do The Happiness Project philosophy - it's a great book!  I was pretty successful at keeping up with my goals, but some didn't happen.

So this year, I am going to try to take on that same goal setting philosophy, with a small twist....I will not determine my goals for the month until that month arrives...that way, I can set goals that match what is going on in my life...

So, for January:
ORGANIZE and REVITALIZE...I wonder if all my goals will rhyme :)
I think I'll try for 10 goals a month...

1.  Laundry - every day.  period.
2.  Drink Water - every day (24 oz minimum)
3.  30 Day Challenge:

4. GET TO THE GYM (atleast once a week) - it's the childcare part that I need to take advantage of - with Joe starting his MBA this year is going to be crazy!!
5. Leave 3 bites on my plate each meal (just heard this on the radio and think it's genious - it says if you do this, you could lose up to 20 lbs in a year)
6. READ - not sure what yet, but I've got a few books on my nightstand waiting to be held
7.  Do not allow clutter in our bedroom (Keep it a place of PEACE)- put stuff away immediately, hang what I just wore back up if I don't need to wash it, put shoes on shoe rack, etc.
8.  Get back on the E-mealz bandwagon - it's the best way for me to be cost efficient and non-stressed about "what's for dinner"
9.  Run the Roomba everday - it's this fantastic robot type vacuum that literally runs around our floors, cleans up and goes back to it's port - all I have to do is press "start" - It's a no brainer in keeping our downstairs swept.  Why haven't I used it more often?
10.  Finish the big huge painting -  I have had a canvas for over a year waiting to be painted

We'll see how I do...  Happy New Year!