LOST

I'm sad to say that I do not know when it was my camera went missing (NOT the nice one). It isn't that I haven't been taking pics of DT, my head has just been a blur lately and I can't differentiate days from others. Anyway, I've hunted high and low and... to no avail. I am certain it will turn up, but for now, God knows where it lies. :(

ALSO lost, are many many pictures taken of DT. My computer crashed before TDD's hiatus and hundreds of pictures in several albums were lost forever. Among the missing are DT's first birthday, zoo pics, apple picking, pumpkin patching...

So now I'm hooked up to an external hard drive and back in business of photodocumenting DT's every everything. I kindly ask (beg, plead, beseech... ) that anyone reading this with any priceless and irreplaceable pictures of my Boogie please send them my way. Of particular importance, I would love photos of DT's birthday party. These were the saddest I've lost. :(

And PLEASE keep an eye out for my camera! :)

Happy Mother's Day

You may not know this about me, but I was baptized on Mother's Day. It was before I was a mom, so you might think that it should hold no special significance, but it is important enough to me that I remember it was Mother's Day. When baptism symbolizes outwardly that one was reborn inwardly, I was reborn on Mother's Day.

A lot of men don't get Mother's Day, and a lot of women think it's overrated. This is not so with me. I don't think they understand what happens to a mom on Mother's Day. It's a day where you think, you remember, you envision. I look at my baby and I think about where we've come from and where we're going. I remember holding my son for the first time after carrying him inside my body for 9 months. I envision him at the ages of my older nieces and nephews, drawing me pictures and burning my breakfast in bed. I envision him calling me on Mother's Day when he is grown, and him having his children call me when he has his own. It's a day of reflection, a day of appreciation. EVERY MOM DESERVES A HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY. Show your mom you love her. Spoil your wife rotten. Wish every mother in your life a happy mother's day. Because she deserves it.

I was reborn again on another Mother's Day, this time 22 months ago. My own personal Mother's Day when I gave birth to Dane Thomas. My life was forever changed on that day, the day he made me a mommy. It's no secret to anyone that has ever known me that this is all I have ever wanted in life: to be a mom. Nothing has and nothing could ever bring me such joy and satisfaction. There's not a day that goes by that I don't tell my son how very much I love him or how proud I am of him and there will be no question in his mind as he grows that he is loved. I am grateful to him and for him, for reminding me every day of the gift of being a mommy.

Hey, Meet K & Jay

Lately I'm hearing a lot of "Jayden, Jayden, Kristen, Kristen, Kristen...?".

Jayden and Kristen are the newest members of our family. Kristen is a friend in the same boat as me (well, her boat was near mine...). She has a 4 year old named Jayden, and is working on getting her life in order for her and her son. She and Jayden moved in with myself and Dane Thomas. DT and Jayden quickly became buds and took on the roles of "big brother" and "little bother" <-- That's not a typo! :)

The single mom thing is hard, and Kristen and I have been able to offer support and help. Our situations are not ideal, but we're both making the most of things. So, please meet Kristen and Jayden. I hope you'll get to like them as much as DT and I do.

Happy Birthday, ME!

I am now the big 26. My birthday has just passed and I want to thank all of you who called/texted/left messages on my phone or Facebook/emailed/sent cards/ or wound up at my surprise birthday dinner.

I have only spent the last 5 years as a wife, and the past 2 as a mom. But at heart, it's always been who I am. It feels as though I have been DT's mom for the past 26 years and I am so thankful that God had him in the works even though MY plans fell through. Without question, Dane is the greatest part of my every day and for the rest of my life, if I get a card and a hug from my baby, each birthday will be better than the last. So happy late birthday, me. A very happy birthday indeed.

Easter 2010

So we've been gone and YOU'VE been missing out. We'll use this week to help catch you up on the highlights.

First, we'll go over one of my favorite highlights ever and always. EASTER! I get pretty excited about Easter, and I hope that I'll raise Dane Thomas to be just as excited about remembering and celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior! With the help of the fabulous Elevation Church, we're well on our way.

This Easter we gathered with more than 11,000 friends to fill up and rock out Time Warner Arena (YES! THAT Time Warner Arena!). It was amazing with powerful worship, true Gospel, baptisms and several hundred lives being saved by the grace of our God. We took the service as an opportunity to show the city God's love by collecting donations to go back into the community. We asked each attendant to bring an item of food, clothing, book, or toy. In total the church gave more than 18,000 things. That's some serious love! :)

I know most of you reading this have been vested in the Howard Family for some time now, so many of you will share in our delight as you remember the time, work, commitment and sacrifice we poured into the church since it's been 100 people strong. We boast in Christ alone as we tell you to watch out for the marvelous things God's doing for his glory in our city. Look out, Charlotte!

It was intense. And I know Dane Thomas is but a child, and remembers not what he ate for lunch today, much less Easter. But I am proud to call Elevation my home and Jesus my Savior. I can barely contain my excitement to watch his faith grow as he develops his own personal relationship with the Lord.

There were also egg hunts and candy...

They weren't nearly as exciting.

Don't Call It A Comeback

Okay, call off the search party; we are alive. So much has gone on in the past couple of months, and we've been working on sorting things out.

We are sad to report that Daniel and I are officially separated and on our way to divorce. I keep retyping sentences to explain or talk about the circumstances, but I suppose it's meant to be a private matter because no words seem appropriate. I will say that we are attempting to be civil about it, and for now, that will have to do. I don't want anyone thinking that they have to stay away from Dan, me, or DT because you are on the "other side". If you're reading this blog entry, then you're on Dane's side. We want you in his life.

So thanks for allowing us the time and space to grieve and heal. Continue to watch the blog because we've returned. But don't call it a comeback. :)

Picture of the Week

ALL computer issues fixed, at least for now. There is bad news to that though, but we talk about that later. FOR NOW, PotW is back!!!

This week, we were doing our weekly shopping as Charlotte everyones prepared for the snow by stocking up unnecessarily on bread, milk, eggs. The extra traffic and the fact that mommy was shopping with a buddy and dawdling (after a playdate and nearing nap time no less!) made for a boring and tiring trip for DT. I couldn't resist when I saw DT had shopped 'til he dropped, and stopped in the frozen foods to get a couple of snapshots.

DT asleep at the wheel!

When No News is Good News

We didn’t update on DT’s potty training yesterday because there was nothing new to say. He is doing marvelously, and has still only had the one accident. Today he undressed, sat on, and pooped in the potty ALL ON HIS OWN. Very unexpected and very pleasing! We’re making serious progress here, and I think aside from an occasional accident and night time peeing, we ARE potty trained!

YAY, DANE THOMAS!

Last night we joined some friends to celebrate the 31st birthday of DT’s Uncle Brian. We ate at Macaroni Grill, where Dane refused cake (weirdo!) and quickly learned where the bathroom was. He hussafussed and hardly ate at all. Sophie and Dane talked and played and hugged a little. It was nice for them to see each other again. Hope to do it again really soon. Happy Birthday, Uncle B!

And sadly, I’ve felt pretty yucky today, and DT has something of a cough, and unbelievable teething-related post-nasal drip that causes him to hack and gag relentlessly. Because of this, you will cut us slack about uploading pictures. And because of this, we missed DT’s cousin Emily’s acting debut in her middle school play. There is an encore presentation tomorrow night that I very much look forward to attending. Congrats on a job well done, Em. And good luck tomorrow.

Progress Report

Today went splendidly in potty training world. Only one accident today because we haven't much had the opportunity to learn poop yet. But we were thrilled that we did manage to get one poop in the potty! First time for that, and we are so proud!

We went and got a second pack of big man underwear, so our collection now includes Sesame Street and Mickey Mouse Club. We also got some Pull Ups for while we're out and about. As of now, DT is still in a diaper while sleeping. Pretty soon, we'll have to pick up even more pee pee treats, because Dane is sure going through them!

He still mostly whines when he has to pee, and I'll ask him if he needs to go potty and he runs to it. He'll occasionally sign for it. But he's getting the concept down for sure!

This is without question the most intense pride we have experienced with our little guy so far. We're lucky and thankful that it's been smooth sailing so far. =)

Wish Us Luck!

Dane Thomas, our itty bitty tiny little baby, is (deep breath)... potty training. Yes, potty training! Here's the info...

We have two potty chairs and a potty ring that fits over the toilet. DT has acquainted himself with the potties, sitting on them while reading and playing. They have been a novelty. He'd peed in them a couple of times, but never showed interest or readiness for potty training. Recently though, he has been tugging on his diaper when it needed to be changed. He has long understood the concept of changing diapers and understands the words poop, pee, diaper, potty. When we decided he might be ready to train, we began putting him on the potty somewhat regularly, and lo and behold, he began to pee in it somewhat regularly.

We bought him "big man underwear". He isn't really as excited as you might imagine a three year old to be. He didn't pick them out because he didn't much recognize any of the characters to choose from, and they really aren't special to him. The smallest size I could find was 2T-3T. Dane is a tall, thin 19 month old. Needless to say they are a little big. But believe me, they are adorable. We also replenished our stock of what has become exclusively reserved for "peepee treats", Dane Thomas' very favorite flavored mini marshmallows.

DT still says very little, but he quickly picked up the sign for potty adapting it as he has every other sign, to make it his own.

For the past two days, except for nap time and night night, DT has been wearing his big man underwear. And in two days he has had one accident! Our biggest victory was at dinner tonight. We met Gramps at a restaurant and DT signed numerous times that he had to go potty. He trickled drops until he could hold the rest and then said he was all done, but the final time he really let go and peed for the first time in a public bathroom! So big!

So that made it official for us - We're potty training! Wish us luck and we'll keep you posted. Join us as we settle in for this fun journey. One baby step-- I mean, toddler step, at a time.

Finally Forward Facing!

At DT's 18 month appointment, I drilled the doctor with questions. He laughed and replied to each of my "Okay, one more thing..."s with "You said one more thing three things ago!", but put on a happy face and was super polite, answering in detail each inquiry with kindness and professionalism.
Something I was very curious about his opinion of was rear-facing versus forward-facing car seats for toddlers Dane's age. After discussing the statistics and weighing the pros and cons, we came to the decision to finally flip DT's car seat to the forward-facing position. We knew it would be more pleasant for all of us - Dane Thomas would be able to see us, it would be easier to get him in and out of the car, etc. and there was very little surprise to the whole ordeal.
Nonetheless, it was an exciting transition for Mommy. =) Of course, pictures were taken to commemorate the milestone. Here's our prince in his forward facing throne.

TJ's Twelve

I forgot to post about TJ's birthday.

Dane's cousin, TJ, lesser known 'round here as Travis James, recently turned 12 years old. 12!... 12!!... Tuh-wuh-elve!!! And so begins what I refer to as "Birthday Season" in the Spicer Family - where they have a birthday a month in their household from January through May. We had a small celebration that included goofing off and cake. Happy birthday, TJ. We love you more than Chuck Norris. =)

Happy Valentine's Day!

We had an average day in the Howard home. Jackie was surprised with a lovely homemade card from her favorite two Valentines! Daniel was sick and slept most of the day, and Jackie and Dane Thomas spent the day playing and relaxing. We stayed in and ate spaghetti for dinner (DT loves spaghetti and fed himself amazingly well) and had mom-made cupcakes for dessert.

I'll update later with a couple pictures. Hope this holds all of our Valentines over in the meantime! =)

Tennessee Trip

Last weekend Daniel went to Tennessee for work, and Dane and I tagged along. We were aware of the weather they were calling for, but if any of us were to be stuck somewhere, we may as well be stuck together. And a change of scene is always welcome with us.
Well, the snow started soon after we arrived and the ice followed. We weren't able to do too much, since the roads weren't drive-worthy, but we enjoyed ourselves anyway. We have a few more to share, but here are some pictures of our Tennessee trip together.

On the Lookout!

I got this lovely email in my inbox this morning from the neighborhood association.

"Animal Control stopped by (02-04-10) to tell us to keep all small animals and small children in after dusk for the next few weeks. A coyote has been spotted in our neighborhood and they are trying to find it."

Nice. Guess we'll be on the lookout for a while... From inside. =/

Blah.

We've been slacking off here with posting. There is just a lot on our plates right now. We're doing great, just a little hectic. Dane's a whirlwind of trouble, but that's not really news, now is it? We have topics, events and pictures to post and I'll do my best to get them up soon. We're all good here. Just a little blah.

For the Record

Dane's 18 month appointment went wonderfully. He has seen more than half a dozen doctors so far, and this one is our favorite. Because we moved him to a family practice when we moved, Dane can see the same doctor as Daniel.

Anyway, Dane's 18 month stats are as follows:
Weight: 23 pounds
Height: 33.5 inches

He is still long and lean, and there is absolutely no cause for worry about his weight gain at this point. I think it helped that the doctor was aware of Daddy's tall, skinny genes! We talked about Dane's growth and development, and he is on par with everything.

When Dane Thomas had to get his shot, I turned the tables on Daniel and made him hold Dane for a change! Dane screamed for about a second, cried for about 10, and then went IMMEDIATELY into making his car sounds. I guess he was trying to tell us he was ready to leave! He was given two suckers (still uneaten in my purse) and two stickers. It was altogether a fantastic appointment and we are blessed that Dane Thomas is doing so well.

Picture of the Week

Dane Thomas went today for his 18 month check-up. He had to get a shot and Daddy held him, while I got a "shot" to capture the moment. Please enjoy.


Details and stats to follow.

God Gives Me Good Things

Well, you should know by now that we are pretty proud of our church. Give us the opportunity to talk about it and we will. Dane belongs to the "Zebra" age group (this just means the one year olds) in E-kidz at Elevation. This week in his diaper bag, I found his craft and lesson plan from his service. Over the next five weeks, Dane will be learning that God gives us good things. We're given the weekly schedule of what good thing they will be focusing on, activities to help reiterate the points he's learned, and cute songs to sing with Dane to illustrate how God provides.
THIS week's lesson was GOD GIVES ME FOOD. I thought it was funny that the first week would be food, considering DT's passion for food. He put food shaped stickers on a paper plate. I thought it was sweet and it now hangs in our kitchen, but I wanted to share with you. Maybe Dane could remind YOU that EVERY good gift comes from God. =)

And with Super Double coupons starting at Harris Teeter tomorrow, I am pretty sure we'll find many occasions to explore and explain with Dane how God gives us food.

18 Months Already

WOW. Our little Baby Dane is 18 months old today. At 18 months he weighs around 22 pounds and he is around 32 inches tall. He isn't talking much, but he is picking up on signing like crazy. He's recently learned cookie. Pair that with "more" and "please", and boy, are we in for it! He loves to make animal sounds and is still pretty obsessed with cars and monkeys. Oddly enough, his favorite noises to make are the baaaing of a sheep, while Mommy adores his owl goes "Whoooo" and Daddy likes his pig sound (it isn't "oink"!). Dane loves being outside to run, swing, look at cars, and go for walks. Upon re-entering the house, he must ring the doorbell.
He enjoys the company of his cousins and grandparents. His favorite pastimes include antagonizing the dogs and recently, shredding napkins. His favorite non-toy toys are pots and pans, xbox remotes, the salt shaker, and cell phones. He has peed in the potty a few times, but I am just not sure he gets that it is a good thing, despite my foolish cheering. His favorite books are the lift-the-flap kind, and he gets to watch Curious George every morning. He eats like I am starting to suspect you might believe, because we talk about it so dang much, and if you've seen him put away food once, you don't quickly forget.
We are absolutely smitten with our little man and we could not be more proud of him. He has filled our lives with love and laughter, and truly, there is nothing more we could ask of him. Happy 18 month birthday, Dane Thomas. We love you.

Happy New Year!

2010! We can hardly believe 2009 is over. We had a fantastic year and we have been so blessed. The biggest and best change was most definitely the new house. Have we said recently that we are LOVING IT??? We are hopeful and excited to see what the new year has in store for us. We hope you'll come along for the ride.

Happy New Year to you and yours!