Where oh where have I been?

I have not posted in a lifetime. Believe it or not, I have really not taken any pictures either. It is unreal, I am not sure what the deal is.

The past 17 days, we were all hanging out at home as a family. The company Matthew worked for had a big (20%) workforce reduction and, unfortunately, he was part of the 20%. It was basically b/c he officed in PSJ instead of the Northeast, but that is neither here nor there at this point. You know, it is funny… when he called me, I could tell he was in his car and I asked where he was going. He told me he just lost his job and I did, momentarily, start crying. In the back of my head I knew he was going to be let go but I guess I , uncharacteristically, just pushed it from my mind. I was on the floor playing with the girls so I did not prolong my tears, I was just shocked. Not one single second was I ever worried. It is amazing what having Faith will do for your nerves. There have been 2 other, very distinct, times in my adult life that I can say that I was at complete peace b/c I had Faith that the Lord would guide me, and this makes #3. (This is not to say that I have not had Faith in other times, but I am saying in really rough times. Times where most people do the blame game.)

We were able to truly enjoy the time we had together as a family while Matthew was home. We went swimming, had people over for dinner, took day trips, just spent time together - and it was really awesome. Before being let go, Matthew was working at least 55-60 hours a week, being able to spend time with him all day was a huge treat.

Our church just voted last week and moved Matthew from a part time Worship Leader to a full time Worship Leader, although that is not his official title (I have no idea what it is, to be honest with you). He could not be happier. Neither could I. This is what he has wanted to do since he made the decision in 2000. And it means we will get to see him a LOT more. We will not complain about that. So, without dwelling on all of that for too long, I will move on.

The girls are great. Celie is set to start school in a few weeks. She is only going one day a week and she is excited beyond words for the time to come. I know she will do wonderfully when she starts, I am so excited for her. She also got her second big girl haircut a few weeks ago. While she was there, she had a blue feather added to her hair. It is very subtle, kind of a peek-a-boo. She LOVE LOVE LOVES it! You don’t even know. She continues to blow my mind with the things she knows, my little sponge. She also started children’s choir at church last week. One of her teachers is Mommy Connie and that is a BIG hit. I have been practicing her song with her at home and she is a pro already. She is going to be a vocalist like her Daddy. I believe Libby will be an instrumentalist (like her Mommy). She still goes to church with Matthew at 7:45 every Sunday morning and really has a good time watching the Praise Team and Praise Band rehearse. Every now and then she gets to join in by playing something herself.

Libby. Sweet Libby. She is changing by the day. Although she has 8 teeth already, I think she is cutting a few more. Believe me, the teeth she has now get an extreme workout every time she eats. She can really power down the food. Raspberries are her favorite thing right now. It changes by the month, although it is generally a fruit. Sometimes we call her “Choppy Wayne”: Choppy for her big cheeks and Wayne b/c that is Matthew’s middle name and she 1) is built JUST like him 2) is a jealous eater. Not that Matthew is now but I have been told he would smell food and lose his mind when he was a baby. Libby is the same way. She would probably love fish sticks and bologna too. GROSS. We are 100% off the bottle with Libby now. I weaned her within one day for all except her bedtime bottle. It was actually not bad at all. I thought she would be like Celie and be a complete nightmare to wean. Not the case. At all. I gave her a bedtime bottle until we ran out of formula, which was 2 nights ago. All of her bottles have been packed up and taken to the attic for storage. Never to be used by her again. It was bittersweet. The crazy thing is: now we are those people that have to buy 2 gallons of milk every week. It is strange. I don’t drink milk at all. I use it with cereal and for a rogue cookie dunk when the mood strikes. Matthew generally doesn’t drink the stuff we have, mostly because it is whole milk. You may as well melt ice cream and drink it. Nasty.

Libby is SUPER fast at crawling and will step around tables, people, stationary objects lightening fast. She can really move. I have tried so many times to hold her hands and make her walk with me. She is not interested. She IS interested in just walking on her own, though. She will get up and walk to me if I am 3-4 steps away. She has really been doing it today. She just doesn’t want any help. At all. She wants to walk on her own, thankyouverymuch. Poor Matthew has 3 Sarah’s at home. Seriously, Celie is Sarah Jr. (which she gets called many times a day… it is unreal. But can I just say that I am AWESOME). Libby is such a sweet baby. I could (and do) just snuggle her and kiss her cheeks all day long. She is so funny, truly, really funny. She is pretty serious and reserved if she doesn’t know you that well, but if she is comfortable with you, she will talk up a storm and laugh her way through the day. One of my favorite things to do is listen to Libby and Celie play together. Celie likes to tell Libby no, but Libby enjoys saying it right back to her. It is cute. (I am sure I will rue the day that I said that.)

Lilly had to have a tooth extracted last week. Poor Lilly. And we even brush her teeth allll the time. Our vet said it is just an issue that short snouted dogs seem to have. She was gone for a complete day. I missed her so much. We all drove over to get her. What a treat. They had a big grate with 2 kittens in it and both girls went NUTS! I mean, insane. I think Libby loves them more than Celie, to be honest. She was really carrying on. And when she saw a taxidermied (is that a word??) bobcat in our Pastor’s office yesterday, she would not stop blowing it kissing and wanting to pet it. And the fox right beside it. (I was a little creeped out, to be honest but what do you do???) Lilly is back home and doing great, bless her heart. I am glad she had it taken out, I hope she will be with us for many years to come: stank breath and all.