Hallelujah! What a Happy Day!

We have some very exciting news today - Chris completed his last "class" of Medical School! Today was his last day of rotations, meaning that he has completed all requirements for medical school graduation except the financial aid exit interview which he will do the week of graduation! I feel so accomplished today! We worked so very hard to get through these last four years, and now he's done. Looking back, it has gone so very fast. CONGRATULATIONS to Chris!!! I'm so proud of him! And while I certainly didn't go through classes and rotations, I'm claiming this as a great triumph for our entire family - it was hard work for us all! Yay for us!

4.22.08 Mason's 1 Month Check Up

Well, Mason went to the doctor today. He's getting so big! He's 9 pounds 4 ounces now. He has had what we thought was baby acne for the last couple of weeks. I asked the doctor about it and he said it was not acne, but was Seborrheic Dermatitis, or cradle cap all over his face, neck and shoulders. I had read on the internet that washing with mild soap and water would help rid of the acne, so that is what I had been doing. He said with this seborrhea, it would only aggravate it, so he suggested only bathing every 3 days and prescribed a hydrocortizone cream to treat it. I'm so glad I asked about it! Poor kid. Hopefully it'll clear it up quickly and he'll be my gorgeous little Mason again - without a scaly face! :-)

A Long-Awaited Visit That was Short But Sweet

My college roommate, Karen, and her husband, Nam (which happened to be one of Chris' very best friends in college, too), came to visit us this weekend. They live in New Jersey and made the greuling 8 hour trip after getting off of work on Friday, getting in to Blacksburg at 2:00 AM. Ugh! They were so tired. We were so glad to see them and had a wonderful time catching up. They hadn't seen Grant since he was 3 months old, and hadn't yet met Mason. Grant was a bit crabby, but overall we had a wonderful time! We went to the 10th Annual Blueridge Kite Festival in Salem, VA. It was fun for a couple of hours. There were kites everywhere. Grant enjoyed the bubble blowing machine and the many characters wandering around the park. The dogs were his favorite. He walked right up to them, waved, and said, "Hi!" It was cute. Karen and Nam came bearing gifts, as well! They brought Grant a huge dump truck for the beach filled with shovels/beach toys. It was a big hit. He's using the truck to chase after Emma Lou, laughing histerically the whole time. He's pretty funny. And Mason got a cute little hand held toy and book. Her parents sent things to get Mason ready for the beach, too - including the most hilarious pair of sunglasses. Karen brought Chris and I a big pan of lasagna to put in the oven one night this week so I don't have to cook while preparing to move and care for 2 boys. AND...Chocolate Chip cookies!!!! We used to make chocolate chip cookies sitting on the floor or our dorm room together. It was so kind of them. We were very touched by such thoughfulness. We played Sequence after Grant went to bed last night, and then watched "Wild Hogs," which they hadn't seen yet. We just had a wonderful time being together. They had to leave after church today, and I was surprised that even after 5 years of being apart, I still get teary when we have to part. Karen is truly one of my very best friends. Thanks, Karen and Nam for everything! It's definitely our turn to make our overdue visit up to NJ!

04.17.08 Mason's getting so big!

I noticed today when I picked Mason up that he is feeling so very solid. He no longer feels super skinny. He no longer feels like he's so very fragile. Instead, there's some meat around his tummy. It feels rather solid, and takes up more of my hand. Though he still definitely seems like a newborn, he feels like he's getting more control over his muscles - especially his head and neck. He can even hold his head up! In a way, it made me so sad to think that he's already getting so big! He's pretty cute, though, don't you think?

04.17.08 Our First Date Night!

We had the great opportunity for one last date night before we head to Jacksonville, FL. Our good friends, Matt and Jenny Mitchell agreed to take both of the boys for us so we could spend a little time together. It was a much needed respite. We had such a wonderful time! It was a lovely day, so we went to a little Pizza place here in Blacksburg with a patio and ate outside - just the two of us! We then went to the mall and looked for some sunglasses since we'll be moving to FL - we figured we needed some decent sunglasses to protect our eyes. I had originally planned to take Chris to test-drive a Mustang Convertible, but he did it on his own earlier in the week in a weak moment, so I didn't figure it'd be near as fun a second time. Just being together was quite nice, though. And very relaxing. We had a great time. My mom has been asking how my tummy's doing, so I took some pictures to show how I look exactly 4 weeks after having Mason. I think I'm doing pretty good...at least I felt pretty tonight. Though I must say, 5 minutes before we left, Mason spit up clear down my front. Grumble, grumble, grumble!

April 16, 2008

Today marks the anniversary of a day that will forever be burned in my mind. Today is the one year anniversary of a day that was characterized by terror. I woke up this morning with a profound feeling of gratefulness mixed with sadness. One year ago on this day I spent the morning hours hiding in the bathroom with my 9 month old son, wondering what in the world was going on, wishing with all of my heart that my husband didn't have to be 5 hours away from us on a medical rotation, scared completely out of my mind. I was terrified every time I'd hear the police drive through the neighborhood and announce on their loudspeaker for everyone to stay away from the windows and doors, stay close to the ground and not to leave their homes because there was a shooter on the loose. I remember after they said we could come out of hiding, putting Grant down for a nap and weeping as I thought of those parents who had lost their children, those wives and husbands who had lost their spouses and those children who had lost their parents to a senseless killing. I had poignant memories of the cold, blustery day. I remembered the snow falling and the wind tearing through this town. It seemed to characterize the day perfectly - a day of frozen chaos. And so today I am thankful for the Spring. The sun has come out and warmed the earth, and with it has brought much healing in the lives of so many here in Blacksburg. Today was a day of remembrance, not a day of mourning, as it was exactly one year ago. It was a day in celebration of those innocent lives that were lost. Healing has begun. I pictured the tulips that had been trampled by panicked feet that I saw last year. They have now been replaced by flowers lifting their happy faces to the sky. I remembered the blood stained sidewalk which has been made clean. And I thought it a poignant picture of the Salvation Message: Christ has taken my blood stained life and has made it clean. He has taken the tulips that were trampled by my own sin, and has lifted beautiful flowers out of the earth where they once lay. Christ has had victory, despite my own sinful desires and intentions. Thanks be to God!! I watched the service of memorial this morning and was amazed at how much of an impact this day had had on me. I hadn't realized how deeply it was engrained in my mind. As part of the service, they read each person's name and told a bit about each person's life. When they would read the names, immediately a picture of the person they had mentioned would flash into my mind. I had never met any of the victims. They were not my friends, or even my acquaintences. I merely saw their names and faces on the news, and I remember looking at the Virginia Tech website and reading about each person one time. But their faces and names are engrained in my mind so much so that one year after they had their lives stripped from them, their pictures are alive in my mind. I was amazed. And so, at the end of this day, I realized that, at least in my life, the act that Cho Seung-Hui had intended for terror and revenge was not successful. Although innocent lives were taken and many families were, and still are, hurting, I (and hopefully many others) can see past the hurt, the hate, the sin. Instead, I see a picture of hope and healing. I see a beautiful picture of Christ's love surpassing all evil intentions. I see two blood-stained hands, reaching out in sacrifice, and I am thankful for His surpassing GRACE that sustains us even in times of trial.

4.15.08 Sleepy Boys

I found both of my boys sound asleep on the sofa late this morning. Aren't they so cute???

4.13.08 The Many Moods of Mason

Mason was wide awake for much of the day today. He's getting so very big and so expressive. I even think I got his first smile last night. It certainly seemed legitimate. How precious - and sort of homely all at the same time!

4.12.08 Happy Birthday, Uncle Dan!

Uncle Dan is having a birthday tomorrow, so we called this morning to see if we could meet him and Aunt Stefi in Mt Airy, NC (home of Andy Griffith and the town Mayberry was modeled after), which is about half way between us. They were able to meet around dinner time, so Grant and I had our first baking adventure - just the two of us! We were out of eggs, though, so we had to quit half way through, get dressed, and make a trip to the grocery store. Such an adventure! Grant was a great helper, and had so much fun stirring (and EATING!) the cookie dough. I was pouring the flour into the measuring cup and letting Grant then pour the measuring cup into the bowl. I was concerned that Grant would pour the flour all over the counter and floor, so I was trying to pay attention to what he was doing, and completely ignoring what I was up to. It should have been the other way around. Grant did great, and I ended up pouring the bag of flour that I was holding in my hand all over Grant's head and shirt which ended up all over the chair and floor. Way to go, mom! He didn't seem to mind a bit! We got to Mt Airy and were disappointed to find that everything closed at 4:00, so there wasn't anything for us to do. So we found a park on our GPS and told Aunt Stefi and Uncle Dan to meet there instead. It ended up being a soccer field with a few picnic tables. It was a Veteran's Memorial park, so it also had a tank that the boys enjoyed playing on. So although there wasn't much to do, we sure enjoyed being with Uncle Dan to celebrate his birthday. And who says running in the grass and playing in the gravel drive isn't enough to entertain someone for hours!!!

4.10.08 BUBBLES!!!!

On another note, while we were outside, Chris decided to vacuum out the car. He and Grant were listening to music and having a ball! Chris would be mortified if he knew I put this one up...I just couldn't resist! He's such a good daddy!

4.10.08 Fun at the Duck Pond

Today was a beautiful day!! It was in the mid-70s, full of blue skies and sunshine, and so we spent much of the day outside playing with Grant and enjoying the sunshine. It was a good day overall, despite the transition Grant is making into the "terrible two's." He's certainly testing his limits, but so desperately wants to have fun and be a sweet, loving child. We took the boys to the Duck Pond at Virginia Tech today to let Grant feed the ducks. Mason just slept the whole time, and Grant probably should have...he needed a nap quite badly, turning our fun adventure into something rather frustrating. But we did have some fun moments. Grant loved the ducks, and wanted to feed them, but ended up teasing them...he'd get ready to throw the bread into the water and as he raised his hand to throw the bread to the ducks, at the last minute would pop the bread into his own mouth and eat it up. He was so silly. He definitely makes us laugh.