Happy Father's Day!

The kids and I were lucky enough to celebrate Father's Day with two of the best.  We spent at week at Pine Grove Furnace State Park -- swimming, biking, hiking, climbing, campfire-ing.



For Father's Day, the kids and I gave these two a few hours to read books in the shade.

Just some of the reasons we love Momma

I love playing robot turtle with her
I love her hugs and kisses
I love going on walks with her, just the two of us
I love her belly button
I love going to the grocery store and getting a donut
I love it when she comes to my Open House at school
I love her dresses
I love riding in the car with her

Love, Alma and James

 

Happy Easter!

Trick-or-Treat Night

 Our little horse was so excited to wear her costume again and practice putting candy into her plastic pumpkin.  But when the actual trick-or-treating began, we asked her to walk up to the neighbor, who she knows well, to get something to put in her pumpkin, she clung to Joshua with all of her might.  Of course, after knocking on a few houses, she got the hang of it and was then trying to transfer all of their candy into her pumpkin. 

We only visited a dozen neighbors (the ones who were especially excited to see Alma, since she won't be eating the candy anyway) and then came home to sit on the porch, hand out candy and watch the parade of costumes go by while Alma enjoyed a lollipop.

Happy Mothers Day

So blessed to be able to celebrate another Mother's Day with my two sweethearts. 

St. Patrick's Day in Bethlehem

The weekend before St. Patrick's Day, we celebrated with a meal of corned beef, cabbage and Irish soda bread, then went to the parade in Bethlehem, and came home to run around the yard with the dog. Pretty much the perfect day!

Happy Valentine's Day

As our camera's battery died right before our big Valentine's Celebration last weekend, I only have a few photos to hint at the awesomeness that included good friends, tons of cute babies (and one soon-to-be delivered-by-the-stork), sweet foods and a game which often ended with Joshua faceplanting onto our living room carpet.  Who could ask for more!?!

Days of Christmas: New Years

We interupt the photos from Oregon to wish you a Happy New Years!

This year I'm resolving to do weekly meal planning so that this cute little body can continue to grow up healthy.  I've started using healthmonth.com to see if it can help me kick-start my progress.  I'll keep you posted ... or if I fail, I won't -- ha!

Days of Christmas: Walking

We had a great visit to Oregon for Christmas.  Since I snapped so many photos (336!) and want to share some of the good ones that summarize our trip, I'm going to spread them out over the next week.  Enjoy!

Beyond the wonderful visiting with family, one of the most notable events of the trip was Alma learning to walk.  Sure, she has done tons of first steps, but on Christmas Eve she decided to walk across the room. 

It was so exciting and I'm thrilled that we were able to experience this first with the Chisholm side of the family.  I will always remember Vickie's screams of excitement and encouragement. 

Merry (Fake) Christmas!

Since we went to Oregon for Christmas, we exchanged gifts with one another before we left.  Simon enjoyed hiding his new bone throughout the backyard. 

 We also went to the Christmas market in Bethlehem to meet St. Nick. Alma wasn't too pleased and clung to me as never before.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Alma waiting patiently for her first Thanksgiving feasting to begin.

 Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday around the Thompson household.  And now with grandchildren it is even more exciting!

While the weather was rather cold, we were able to get outside a bit and enjoy the sunshine. 

We are thankful for so many things this year.  Here's hoping that we can keep that thankfulness in our hearts throughout the year!

Happy Father's Day

Like Mother's Day, we had a chill Father's Day.  Sure, breakfast in bed (Alma left the kitchen a mess!  Oh, kids these days, right?), a nice walk with the pup and good foods. 

Joshua is such a great father -- very attentive and it is obvious that his whole world revolves around what is best for Alma.  In reflecting on what makes Joshua such a wonderful father, I think the words faith and creativity sum it up.  I can only hope that Alma learns from his example. 

What a blessing Joshua is to our whole family.

Happy Memorial Day!

We had a great long weekend.  From our day at Marsh Creek Lake State Park with Nana and Grandpa to the bbq at Cousin Peter and Janice's house.  Look how cute those kids are!

Reflection on Mother's Day

As we celebrate my first official Mother's Day, I want to think back to this past month, which has been a bit more difficult than other months.

I'm slowly coming to realize how difficult motherhood is. I'm learning that it isn't a sprint but a long distance race where the rules change all the time. Once you have one part of the process down pat, something else changes. From naps to nursing to sleeping at night, there is something always in flux. It becomes a study of being okay with these changes, having faith that I don't always be sleep deprived or behind on emails, and knowing that Joshua will still love me even if he only sees me when I'm grumpy. So more like a long distance run while sleep deprived and questioning everything ... but it is somehow the best, most wonderful thing you could ever imagine doing. Seriously, being Alma's mother is one of the most exciting and fulfilling roles I have ever filled.  Just looking at her face for a minute realligns any negative thoughts and emotions I might be feeling.

I could not be happier to be on this journey of motherhood.

Happy Easter!

Happy Valentine's Day

Life with Joshua has been wonderful.  All the large events that happened since we met (moving cross country, marriage, school, buying a house, having a baby) along with all the small daily moments of love (rubbing my feet every night of our pregnancy, daily phone calls to check in with one another, running errands together since we hate to be apart) have created a stockpile of happy memories.  Sure, there have been challenges -- owning an older home or training a hyperactive dog are just two examples that come to mind.  However, we are blessed to know that we are fully invested in our joint future. 

A family member once called our love "revolutionary".  I have embraced how wonderful that description is.  It has been great to love with all my heart and know the feelings are returned as fully. 

And now our revolutionary love gets to continue on to the next generation with Alma. 

Joshua and I have recently been marveling that five years ago when we first saw each other (and even before then) Alma's potential existed in both of us.  It's neat to think that maybe her spirit has been just waiting around for us to get our own dramas and events out of the way before joining us.  How great that, in a sense, this little being who makes us feel even more in love with each other has always been with us. 

Love you, Joshua.  Thanks for being my life partner and Alma's fantastic father!

Merry Christmas!

We had a great Christmas ... although we are in a bit of a sleep-deprived fog these days so it could have been an awful Christmas and we just didn't notice. Although, seriously, we had a nice holiday and were happy that we were able to celebrate with Nana and Padre Thompson, Brian and Bridgette and their kiddos.

The day after Christmas, Patrick and Carrie stopped by for a quick visit and dropped off some food for us, which was awesome. This week, Joshua does not have to work so we plan on sitting around house and going for long walks. Yeah holidays!

40 Week Update

Still happily pregnant ... although we are starting to feel that labor could begin soon. Exciting stuff!

Thanksgiving morning photo:

Photo from this morning:

Keep us in your prayers as we start the process of meeting our little SweetPea!

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In other news, we had a great Thanksgiving with my parents, Brian, Bridgette and their little ones. It was so nice to have everyone over to our house for a big meal. Thanksgiving is easily the best holiday of the year.