Giving Thanks

It was a great Thanksgiving.  People count – 61.  Homemade (by the girls and me)roll count – 194.  Pie count –34.  You get the idea… it was a bountiful feast!

It was everybody’s “on year.”  Meaning that nobody was missing, spending the holiday with their in-laws.  All of my siblings, except for Aunt Kami in Guatemala, were there with their spouses.  All of the Griffith cousins had come- some from out of state.  Even sweet cousin Jill, who is fighting cancer, was there to celebrate.  Our family has grown through marriages and births, and it was a big, joyful reunion.

As I peeked around that kitchen during the prayer (when my eyes should have been closed,) I felt such a swelling of gratitude.  My heart and my eyes overflowed as I thought about the abundance of good things in my life.  I am married to my very best friend, who loves me and takes care of me.  My children are happy and healthy.  They have never known hunger or war.  We live in a land of peace and freedom, full of opportunities.  I could go on and on.

Crowding into the front room for our traditional singing time,  I thought about my Father in Heaven, and what the Book of Mormon calls “the great plan of happiness.”    This is exactly what he wants for us.  He wants us to feel joy, in spite of all the hard things that happen in life.   He wants for our families to be united- to strengthen and support each other.  I felt strongly that following His commandments and guidelines is the surest way to be happy.  I had to take a little break from singing so I could soak up all that love and happiness! 

I am so grateful for all of the blessings in my life.  Especially my family.  And I picture heaven as a bigger, better, Thanksgiving day!

Shake well

The other day I noticed, a few times, that the kids were shaking the silverware drawer.  They would open it, shake it a few times, then grab a fork or spoon and be on their way.

I didn’t think much of it because, well, kids do things like that sometimes.  Only when Savannah asked about it did I realize what was going on.  As she was taking her turn to shake the silverware drawer she asked “Mom, why do you want us to shake this before we use it?”

Confused, I asked what she was talking about.  She pointed out the “instructions” stuck to the front of the drawer.

 

Someone had put this sticker on the front of the drawer.  Since I have been labeling everything lately, (light switches, closet shelves, bathroom cabinets, etc.) the kids just assumed it was put there by me.

With their usual unquestioning obedience, (HA!) they were faithfully following my instructions.  Shake well before each use.

When I explained that it wasn’t put there by me at all, we all had a good laugh.  For the rest of the day the kids had fun trying to sneak that sticker to each others’ behinds.

Too bad I didn’t get any pictures of that!  Or better yet, videos!

In the trenches (of motherhood)

Savannah took this picture of the glamorous life that I lead.  Ha!

And to re-post from last year:

Trying to get Caleb to do anything that was not his idea is at least as pointless as banging your head repeatedly against the kitchen cabinets.

I should know. I tried both today. I prefer the head banging.

I didn’t physically bang my head against the cabinets today, but it’s the same feeling.  I can’t talk him into eating breakfast OR packing a decent lunch these days.

On the bright side…

Elijah is learning to make cooing sounds.  It’s so cute to watch his whole body work so hard to get one little sound out.  And then he acts surprised and tries again.  He’s a smiley, good natured little guy!

Birthday boy

Happy 9th Birthday to Josh!  We had a nice family celebration at home.  He requested a barbeque for his special dinner, and Aunt Theresa helped make a cake.

We got a video of him blowing out his candles, but no pictures.  The only actual photo we have is this one of him holding his new birthday quilt that is mostly finished in this picture:

 

Some things that I love about that boy:

The way his eyes and his WHOLE FACE lights up when he’s really excited.

He is super thoughtful, and tells me often how much he appreciates me.

He is a good big brother.  He does a great job when I need him to babysit Simon and Jonah so I can nap or get things done.

He’s very creative, and has a great imagination.  Right now he loves to make origami and duck tape creations.

He loves basketball, and really likes to be coached.  I love to see him willing to work so hard at something.

I love that he loves to read, maybe as much as I do!

He is generous.  When I take him to the dollar store, he always wants to spend a couple of dollars on things to share.

I have such a clear memory of the day he was born.  The moment I saw him, I knew that this was Joshua.  (We had been a little uncertain of his name up to that point.) It was like I had known this boy forever, and he had been a  part of our family forever.

Happy Birthday Josh!  I’m so glad you’re a part of our family!

Moments and Filters

I wish there was a way to really capture moments and hang on to them.  I want to keep more than pictures and words.  I want to remember all of the details and feelings of this moment.

I’m up late at night with a sweet newborn baby nuzzling my neck.  He has just finished nursing, and is drowsy and content.  His hair is so soft that I can barely feel it as I stroke his little head.  His legs and arms are curled up under him so that he makes a compact little bundle up against my chest.  He smells sweet and makes little grunting sounds as he tries to get comfortable.

The lights are dim, and the house is clean and quiet.  I am feeling blessed to have such a beautiful life.  I’m looking at the pictures of my other kids on the walls, thinking how fast the time has gone.  I’m so grateful that I have gotten to experience these sweet moments so many times. 

There is something about having a new baby in the house that makes the atmosphere more peaceful.  Even sacred.  It’s like we have a soft filter over our home.  The kids can feel it, I know, because they have been happier and kinder to each other.  Not perfect, of course, but really sweet.

I can see Caleb, in particular, watching, absorbing the way his dad takes care of me and the baby and storing that information away for future use.  I hope that one day he will be as sweet and gentle and caring as his dad is with me.

Of course there are plenty of details that I don’t care to keep forever, but these sweet ones are what make life beautiful.  I am grateful for moments.

Welcome Baby Elijah!

You know the old saying of “If you can’t say somethin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all?”  Well that’s why my blog has really been sparse.   I was having a hard time there towards the end of the pregnancy.

I’m happy to announce that little Elijah Jeffrey Davis, also known as Eli, has finally arrived!  He was a healthy 10 lbs. 3 oz. and 20 1/2 in. long.

He was born Thursday, September 22nd.  I went in at 9:00 am to be induced (he was already 2 days late) and he was born at 7:30 pm.

Before:

After: (We were both pretty happy he was out of there!)

It took several hours of Pitocen to get my labor going, but once the Dr broke my water, things really took off.  He came in to check me about an hour and a half later, and it was already time to push.  About 3 minutes later we had a baby!

Grandma and Grandpa Alston had taken the kids out to Organ Stop Pizza for dinner, and came by the hospital on the way home.  They were just in time to meet Eli when he was nice and alert.  We had our first family prayer together, and everyone got to hold him.

I sure love my sweet family.

Mystery talking

This morning on the way to school, Jonah (a first grader) said “I really don’t like all that mystery talking in the morning.”

Having no idea what he was talking about, I asked “What is mystery talking?”

“You know, the one that always ends with ‘Have a great day!”

Caleb caught on a little faster than I did.  He asked “Jonah, does this mystery talking come from a little box up high on the wall in your classroom?”

“Yes.”

“Does everyone in your class think it’s a mystery?”

“Yes.”

“That box is called a speaker, and the mystery talking is called the morning announcements.”