Double Whammy

For the first time in my life, I had to think about how to spell the word "whammy".  I'm guessing that I spelled it correctly because the little squiggly red line didn't show up underneath it.  Anyway...

I have a few questions for different types of people.  

First, a question for everyone:  Have you ever experienced jetlag?  

Second, a question for women:  Have you ever been pregnant?  

And now narrowing the field a bit, a third question for pregnant women:  Have you ever experienced jetlag while you were pregnant, specifically that 1st trimester?

When Thomas asked about how tired I was when pregnant with Isaiah, I used to describe it as the kind of tired that you feel with jetlag; you know, that just not quite able to function tired that lasts for a few days, depending on the severity of the time difference.  So now I'm at a loss of how to explain this, except that every part of my body feels like it weighs 500 pounds, which is a lot when you combine it all.

I think I'm losing my mind...but it's for a great cause!

Christmas Trees, Snow, Steaks, Tests, Colds--a Full Week in NC

We arrived safely in NC to be met by my parents and whisked away to celebrate Christmas in their cozy home with ALL the Christmas decorations still up!

We flew out of Baton Rouge really early, so Isaiah sacked out in the van, listening to his beloved music.

Christmas started right after lunch, but first there was some lovin' to catch up on!

My cousin, Robin made us some yummy chocolate chip cookies, and Isaiah had to chow down right away!

My mom made me a very special Christmas present--a Shutterfly book with pictures from when I was really little.  I looked at it so many times, and yes, I cried.

And then the next morning I cried because we had to take down the tree (well, not really, but it was sad), but at least there was snow!
Unfortunately, this was about the end of Isaiah's outside time in NC because he and I both got sick with colds. :(  If you think about it, please pray for us as we're flying on the 27th--colds and planes that go up and down don't mix well.

Isaiah is a great helper, especially moving sticky notes from one place to another.

Thomas grilled steaks for my birthday.  Wow!  31! And if you want to know how that feels, I really can't answer that because, well, what's in a number?  Oh, and the steaks were GREAT!

Isaiah is a great little airplane, now, too.  He'll say "Airplane" and stick his arms out really stiff and gets very excited.  It's really cute, I feel compelled to tell you, in case you couldn't come to that conclusion on your own. 

Saturday we had some special visitors!  My cousin came down from Richmond with her 2 munchkins, much to Isaiah's delight!  He had little people to play with again.

And then my friend Grace came over, too!  I love her!  We got to spend some time catching up on all that's been going on.  It's so grand to have friends that stay with you all the way from kindergarten.

Sunday was church, of course, and family time with special shots with the great grandparents and Isaiah.

Oh, and if you're wondering what "test" the title refers to, this is it:

Guess what I'll be doing some time in September!

I'm Sure That You've Been Wondering...

I'll finally relieve you of the terrible suspense that I know that you've been enduring.  Though I don't have the exact numbers, you can trust me when I say that Daddy kicked my butt in our bowl picks.  Um, yeah, I can safely say that this year was the absolute worst that I have EVER done in picking the college bowl games.

So there you have it.  Now you can rest well again.

Birthday Fun in Baton Rouge

We enjoyed our second birthday party in Baton Rouge.  Isaiah and I enjoyed opening presents from our thoughtful family.

But I think the biggest hit was the headphones from Grandma and Grandaddy.  Just check out this joy!

He even let Grandaddy listen a little bit.

And then Grandaddy gave Isaiah some chocolate cake.

Is this what sugar glaze looks like?

And this is how Isaiah helped me pack the next day.  This Little Man loves his music!

Baton Rouge--Cooler in January

Thomas' parents came to pick us up from the Notts' house to take us to Isaiah's last doctor's appointment.  Thankfully everything went well this appointment also.  Isaiah was happy to see his grandparents!

We were excited to see all of Thomas' family, of course!  We couldn't believe how much our little nephews had grown.  We had fun playing with all the nieces and nephews.

Isaiah and his grandma were breakfast buddies.

And this is how a jetlagged little boy sleeps--safe and sound in Mama and Daddy's bed.

We enjoyed tons of outside time, including walks...

...ball pits...

...and swings.

Grandma is a great reader!

Thomas looked really hard on these guitars for our older nephews.

Thomas received the first donation for the Tuvan Bible Project from a Sunday school class in Baton Rouge.

And we were able to be in the service for Luke's dedication!

And here's the whole Slawson clan; quite the group, huh?  And they're all pretty great!

Travel, Jetlag, Doctors, Friends

Having a cold has some benefits, I suppose.  For instance, at the moment I can just sit around and between coughing and sneezing and blowing my nose, take the time to do some updating on the blog.  So here goes...

We praise the Lord for safe travels from Russia to America!  No delays, no landing on the Hudson River, etc.  Here's how Isaiah traveled in the airport.  We checked his stroller and carried him in his new Kelty Kids TC 3.0 that I am now absolutely LOVE!

We arrived safely in Atlanta and slept at a friend's house before driving to Jackson the next day.  Driving the car again was fun!  We found some good radio stations and hit the road!  Naturally we stopped along the way for some Dreamland Barbeque!

Once in MS we stayed with the Nott family.  We were able to adjust to the time difference farily well.  Ok, honestly that first night in MS was TERRIBLE!  Isaiah woke up at 2:15 am and kept on trucking ALL DAY!  Here he's playing with one of the Nott boys later that morning.

Isaiah's doctors' visits went very well, praise the Lord!  We had good reports and made plans for the future when we return for a few months.  We'll be working hard to get Isaiah in an upright position with just the right equipment.  We're excited about what the Lord has planned for him!

Though we couldn't see everyone that we wanted to visit, we were able to get in some special time with some friends.  Saturday Isaiah and I drove into Yazoo City and saw some friends.  Isaiah had fun playing with some of his old friends.

Sunday Thomas preached at 2nd Presbyterian Church, and we had lunch with the Gilbert family.  They had the first of several birthday cakes for Isaiah and me.  Isaiah had tons of fun playing with the 4 girls; in fact, for the first time in a long time, he cried and resisted his nap because it meant having to stop playing.

So while he napped, Thomas took up the playing responsibilities.

We enjoyed our time in MS very much!  Thanks to all our friends who helped make the time special, though it was very short.

Oh, and Isaiah got a special goodbye from a really sweet little girl!