Welcome 2009!

I hope everyone had a Happy New Year! Ours was very low key but just how I wanted it to be. We stayed in and played games and barely stayed awake until midnight. Having a newborn can really shift your priorities. I'm so excited for this new year to start. It's nice to close the chapter on 2008 and start fresh! I am setting three goals for 2009 which I think are realistic for me to achieve.
The first and most important one is to continue to grow and mature in my faith. I want to be a good example for Bishop and to raise him in a loving Christian home. I am so thankful to my parents for raising my sister and I that way. I don't know if my faith would be as strong as it is today if it hadn't been instilled in me from the beginning. Here is a "deleted scene" from a sermon at the church we've been going to called Journey Ecclesia:

Some of you need to let go of resentment, and treasure again.You need to go back to the sweet moments. The good things.You need to cleanse your soul.For some of you, it is not a matter of forgiveness but a matter of simply being reminded of what you have. For once, would you put the dishes down, and leave them dirty and come and sit on the couch.For once would you shut your phone off and give more than 15 minutes to each conversation.Would you close your laptop, and star into the eyes of the real people surrounding you not the pictures of the ones on your Facebook.I am not saying those things are wrong, I am just saying how often are you fully present?How much time to take to ponder and treasure that which is good.I honestly believe this is one of the secrets of life.Without it, you will spend most of your minutes in the day, off center...Being fully present keeps you more acutely aware of the kingdom that is around you...The radar of the soul remains sharp and is not dulled by the restless, driven pursuit of doing.

I think this is a great reminder to all of us. Sometimes we just need to slow down and treasure each moment. Blogging has helped me do this. I never thought I would be someone who would enjoy this because I've always been pretty private about my personal life but it has allowed me to reflect and journal all that I'm thankful for.
The second goal for 2009 is to get on a budget. I'm not too excited about this goal because I've never really had to do it before so it's kind of scarey to me. I started my career when I was 20 and it has been a great and successful career for me. But now Bishop is my top priority and I want to be with him as much as I can. I want to work to live not live to work. I don't think anyone has ever loooked back over their life and said I wish I had worked more. I'm sure that it's been more like I wish I had spent more time with the people I loved. So I'm going to have to get creative and be very disciplined in order to do this. It will be a nice challenge for me.
And last but not least is to loose the baby weight and then some! I wish that I had been in better shape before I got pregnant so I could have exercised through the pregnancy. Even though the majority of what I gained was water weight and it's already come off I still have a ways to go. It's amazing what one little 7 pound 12 ounce baby can do to your body! I'm still wondering if my feet will shrink back to normal size. But, I am going to make this goal more about a lifestyle change and not just about the weight. I need to create habits that I love like cooking healthy, yoga and exercising outside. For me following a specific diet plan and being in the gym will just set me up for failure. Wish me luck!

2 months old

playing dress up with his bear outfit

canine brother Canyon

cousin Ben

Aunt Anne Marie (Ame) and Uncle Alden

cousins Sydney and Avery

Bishop is 8 weeks and 5 days old today! His personality is showing more and more everyday and he is so strong. Ever since he was born he could hold his head up and move it from side to side to everyone's amazement. I'm certain that he will be crawling and walking well before he is expected to. I was walking by 8 months so he just might follow in my footsteps. He has so much determination already. I joked with mom when I was pregnant that I wanted to have him in time to be a libra because libras are suppose to be laid back and calm but he had plans of his own and ended up being a scorpio which are said to be high maintenance and strong willed. So when he gets mad I say that its the scorpio in him coming out. It really doesn't matter to me I will love him no matter how he behaves. He is great when we go out in public. He is a regular at Starbucks and has been to the movies and church several times and always acts like an angel. We have discovered the bouncy seat and he likes it so much better than the swing so I can actually take showers when I want to now and I don't have to wait for Jeremy to get home to hold him. The Baby Einstein videos are starting to capture his attention also. But he still mainly just wants to be held and he loves being in the baby bjorn too. Mom just ordered me a carrier similar to it but better from babyhawk and I can't wait until it gets in. It's a little more stylish and comfortable. I never could get the hang of the slings even though Kathleen swears by them. He would just sink into it and I would worry that I was going to smother him. I think he prefers to be able to move his arms and legs too. He is really filling out and starting to get a little belly. He now weighs 13 pounds! We got a video camera for Christmas from my parents (thanks mom and dad) so we can capture everything now...not that we haven't been already with our cameras. Jeremy makes me send pictures to him during the day so he doesn't feel like he's missing out. I'm starting back work next month and even though I'm looking forward to it I am going to miss Bishop so much. It's only 2 days a week and an occasional 3rd day so its not as bad as it could be and I'm going to feel better knowing that our parents will be watching him and not a stranger. We are so lucky to have such a wonderful family who loves Bishop so much. It's so cute to see Jeremy's little brother and sister, who are only 8, and my nieces and nephew with him. He loves his Aunt Ame who can put him right to sleep and Avery, his 3 year old cousin, tries to nurse him. She'll pull down her shirt and rest her chest on his head. It's hilarious! I'm sure that she'll love that story when she gets older and Bishop and Ben who just turned a year old will be, as Leslie Kathleen's father-in-law said, "thick as thieves" when they get a little older. It will be so much fun seeing them all grow up together.

First Christmas!

We just celebrated our first Christmas with Bishop! He slept through most of it with no idea what he was missing. We didn't do santa this year because there was an hour and a half wait and I figured he could care less since he is only eight weeks old. His Pa was a good stand in though with his santa hat. Next year I'll be more prepared and get him to the mall early. He looked adorable with his little romper that has a reindeer on the butt and we got him his first Bible that has thick pages so we don't have to worry about him tearing them out.

Jeremy and I splurged on each other this Christmas because we figured that after this year we are going to be more focused on making it fun for Bishop. So I got him a mountain bike that he's already been riding all around the neighborhood like a little kid and he got me a necklace and ring, but not that kind of ring. ;) They are both so precious to me. The necklace has Bishop's name on it and the ring has a beautiful handwritten quote by Rumi going around it that says; A mountain keeps an echo deep inside itself. That's how I hold your voice. Needless to say I got teary eyed when he gave it to me. He is also getting me a cleaning service to start coming to the house which is priceless. But the best present of all was Bishop! Having him here to share Christmas with makes my favorite holiday a hundred times better. It will be so much fun to see the excitment on his face when he is older and understands it and I hope that I can do as good of a job as my parents did in teaching him the real meaning of Christmas...the birth of Jesus!

Six Weeks Pictures

Here are some pictures taken today on Bishop's six week birthday by his Aunt Kathleen. She did such a beautiful job and was so patient with him.

5 weeks pics

Bishop had his one month appointment this week and he weighs 10 lbs and is 22 inches! I wonder if he'll be a chubby baby like his daddy was. :) He started smiling this week too!

Forgiveness

Now that I'm home from work on maternity leave I've been trying to get into some healthy and productive routines so I don't just stay in my pajamas watching TV all day. One thing that I've started doing is listening to sermons that I've downloaded onto my phone. So every day I set aside time to rock with Bishop and read, listen to music or one of the sermons. I love this time with him and now I look forward to it every day. The other night I listened to a sermon about resentment that really spoke to me. I am guilty of being resentful and I struggle with letting things go and forgiving people and I probably worry too much about people that haven't forgiven me too. But I know that once you do there is a peace that comes over you and a weight is suddenly lifted. After all who are we to judge we are all human and make mistakes but when you hold onto resentment it's as if you are saying that you are better than that person. It becomes a control issue. It can make you feel good about yourself and powerful to hold things over people and not allow them to experience your forgiveness. A sad part of it is that usually the people you are resentful towards you once loved. In the end it's actually you that suffers and becomes bitter. It's not healthy to hold onto so I'm letting go of any resentment I carry and I pray that God gives me strength to forgive those who have hurt me and that I am in return forgiven by those I have hurt. Life is too short and I don't want to waste it being bitter.