Outer Banks Vacation

We just got back from a wonderful vacation with my family at the Outer Banks. This is the third year we've done this, and thanks to Dad and Mom's generosity, we were all able to stay in a huge house almost right on the beach. Here are some pictures from the week. I might write more later, but I'm up way past my bedtime, so pictures will have to do for now. :)

I won't put all the outtakes on here, but let's just say that these cousin pictures are nearly impossible to get good ones of everyone! This was the best I got. L to R: Kathryn, Meredith, Hayden, Alison, Bradford, Bethany. I'm so glad Kathryn got to play with her cousins and get to know them better.

And here's all the "great-grands" with Gram, my mom's mom.

Kathryn and Papa (my dad)

Shepard, Kristen (my sister), and Hayden

Margaret (sister) and Josh, who were able to come last minute...we were so glad to have them there!

Jeremy (brother) and Nancy and family

Stephen (brother) and Emily, just back from their honeymoon!!

Kathryn really loved the beach!

With cousin Bethany

Running from the waves

Proof that Nick did go outdoors this year...the guys had a lot of fun on the kayak, especially on the day that the waves were huge. At least they said it was fun...it looked a little scary to me, and it involved several major wipe outs that day!

A picture of the sky on the last night. We could see this storm rolling in, and the sky was so dark...I love the colors and lines.

Ice Cream!

After 6 weeks of not having the stomach for ice cream (what?!? I know, crazy), I had my first "craving" for a Dairy Queen Blizzard Friday evening, so Kathryn and I packed up to find the nearest one. Needless to say, she LOVED her kittie cone (which was huge, by the way). She was very absorbed in eating her cone...could hardly get her to look at me.

"Okay, here I go..."

"You didn't think I could eat that much, did you Mom?"

"Oooo, they didn't tell me about the cone!"

And one more picture for fun...This picture cracks me up.

18 Months and a Visit to the Fountains

This morning I took Kathryn to the Birkdale Fountains, since we were up that way for her 18 month check-up. At first she wasn't at all sure about the water, and she would cling to me when I tried to bring her near. After about 30-45 minutes, I think she suddenly realized that it might be fun to join the other kids splashing around, and she loved it! Here are a few pictures of our outing...as you can see, little Missy is getting quite the personality!

"Ooo, I look cool in these."

"Hey, this is FUN!"

Striking a "model" pose

Never too young, right? :)

Life with an 18-month-old keeps me busy! It is such an interesting (and sometimes perplexing) transition from baby to toddler, where it really feels like a whole new set of joys and challenges than I experienced a year ago in the mothering realm. I love watching Kathryn developing, as she's learning new words (about 25 words or signs now) and can really communicate what she needs or wants. I love that she's very cuddly at night now and will ask me to sing "Jses" (Jesus Loves Me) and "Apita" (The B-I-B-L-E)- don't ask me how I can translate some of her jibberish. :) I love how she plays with her babies and little dolls, trying to wrap them up in blankets and push them in her stroller. I love that she loves books and will back up into my lap with a book for me to read. Along with the joys of this season has come a new dependence on the Lord for wisdom and guidance as Nick and I are given a huge responsibility to steward her little soul for the short years she'll be under our roof. I'm certainly seeing now that things are less black and white than I imagined before having kids. I'm grateful for the newfound hunger for the Lord's presence and strength, even though it's not easy. I'm grateful that even though I can not love and care for Kathryn in my own strength, I have much stronger arms around me, giving me grace for each new day. And I am grateful that I can do all things through Him who strengthens me...comforting words indeed.

Wedding Weekend

This last weekend we headed up to Ohio for my brother Stephen's wedding. It was wonderful to be with family- both families for us, as Nick's parents joined us to help out with Kathryn. (Thank you, Dennis and Marilyn!) So here are some pictures from the events...

Emily and Stephen
The Happy Bride and Groom

Welcoming Emily into the "Sisters" picture:
Emily, Margaret, Kristen, Nancy, Me

The Rogers Clan (my mom's side of the family).
All of the women (including my cousin Katie, who flew in from China!)
except the little girls, who were back at the hotel.
"Nana" and Kathryn
Girls in White Dresses with Blue Satin Sashes
Alison, Meredith, Bethany (my nieces)Meredith "Mer-Mer"

Alison "A-Bomb"
The best of the many attempts to get a cousins shot...with three one-year-olds,
this posed quite a challenge!
L to R on top: Bethany, Meredith, Alison.
Bottom: Kathryn, Bradford, Hayden

What a Stud- Putting at the reception, which was on a golf course
Kathryn was so hyper the entire weekend, so we're getting back on our routine now until our next vacation in a week.
We were so thankful that Nick's parents could join us for the weekend. Not only was it wonderful to see them, but they were a HUGE help with Kathryn.
On the way home, we stayed the night at Nick's brother Pat's house to see their baby Tyler, whom we hadn't met yet.
Proud "Mamaw"

Kathryn was quite taken with Tyler, as you can see.

The night we stayed at Pat and Sarah's was interesting...Kathryn woke up when we went in the room to go to bed ourselves at about 11:00, and she got completely wired...Normally we would just let her cry and she'd settle right down, but when she was four feet from our ears, that did not sound fun, and we didn't want to wake up the whole household. So after trying everything we could think of to get her to settle down to sleep, we finally decided to pack the car and head for home at 4am. Nick had gotten about an hour of sleep (if that) and I was able to sleep for a few hours in the car. Of course, as soon as we got in the car, Kathryn fell right asleep. So we're catching up on sleep now and getting back into our routine.

Announcing...

No April Fools this time! We are delighted to anticipate Cygnet #2 to the Swan clan in early March. I went in for an early ultrasound this last week and saw the baby's little heart flashing on the screen...amazing! Please pray for the safety of this little one...we certainly don't take this pregnancy for granted. I have watched most of my close friends walk through miscarriages, and I know that I am still early in the pregnancy. Pray that I would also be able to trust the Lord, that even if He chooses to take this wee one before he or she is born, that we can trust in His goodness. I guess motherhood is all about trusting the Lord, right? There's often a temptation to worry, and always an opportunity to trust God.

English Muffin Recipe

For those of you interested in making English muffins, here is a link to the recipe I used.

I have made these once with bread flour and once with half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. Both were good. Also, I used an ungreased electric skillet to cook the muffins (surprisingly they don't bake!) set at about 200 degrees, flipping every 5 minutes (total cooking time 20 minutes).

We've Been....

Giving our Dining Room chairs a facelift,

Blowing Bubbles,

Cleaning our house,

Grocery Shopping
("I found what I want!")

Making English Muffins (Yummy!),

Being Silly,
Watching Nick play baseball,
With a little craziness thrown in for good measure.

Nursing Covers

One more post for the day: I am making and selling nursing covers. Here's a link to the website, if you are interested. www.rebafashion.blogspot.com

Let me know if you would like one!

Sick Girly

Well, as you can tell, today is my day to update our life on the blog...thus the multiple posts on one day. Anyway, yesterday Kathryn wasn't feeling well (stomach and fever), and this is how she looked all afternoon when she got up from her nap. She literally just laid on me for almost an hour and a half, sleeping for about 45 minutes of that (after her 3 hour nap!) She looked so pitiful, and it was strange to see her so lethargic. Even though it was sweet snuggle time for me, it made me VERY grateful that we have a healthy little girl 99% of the time. I can't imagine what heartache it must be to see your child suffering day in and day out. Thankfully, Kathryn is back to herself today, as evidenced by a total "squirm bug" when I asked if she wanted to snuggle with Mommy . :)

"Helping"

Well, I've been trying to figure out what it looks like to accomplish things while Kathryn is awake...it's funny, I don't think I understood that challenge until recently. While not wanting her to get the sense that she owns and commands all of my attention all of the time, I'm wanting to make sure I'm not exasperating her by doing other things when she needs my attention. I would welcome any thoughts on this. In the meantime, I've been trying to have her come alongside of what I'm doing and "help." Of course it's taken longer to accomplish just about anything with my little "helper" in tow, but it's been fun, too.

Helping me make a cake...Yummy frosting!

"Mmm, I see some water down here, and I'm so thirsty. The logistics may be a little challenging, but I think I got some!" ("helping" me plant and water flowers)

My new blooms...I just love flowers!

Personality

Here are some recent videos of Nick and Kathryn...gives a little window into her budding personality these days. The top is kind of hard to tell, but they were blowing on each other...it was so funny. The second video shows a glimpse of how our house is not quiet anymore- I love it!

Company

My apologies that it has been so long since I last posted. So here's what we've been up to. A few weeks ago, we had a busy week of visitors, starting with a wonderful visit with Scott and Katie Faris (from Pastors College). The time seemed too short, but we enjoyed lunch with the Seavers and the Farises on Sunday afternoon. It was great to be able to dive right in where life had left off since we saw them last (including Scott and Katie's new baby-not pictured-, whom we hadn't met yet). Below: Scott, Elijah, and Katie Faris, Kristin, Sarah Evelyn, Mike, Emma Seaver, and Nick. Yours truly behind the lens.


Then on Wednesday of that week we enjoyed a visit with our friends Jim and Jeanette Maxim, parents of Nick's best friend from college. We had spent two Thanksgivings with the Maxims when we were in NY. They were able to stay the night, and then our friend Chris Gaudi (friend from Juilliard) stayed with us the rest of the week. Below: Nick, me, Jeanette, Kathryn, Jim. Kathryn warmed right up to Jim and Jeanette...I think she could tell that they were "kid people." Jim taught her how to "bear hug," and they brought some sweet books for Kathryn that she has loved.