blockes

Fall in a Nutshell, part 2: Moving on, moving up

2010-01-02T18:16:00.009-06:00

This page has been our one and only family blog for almost 2 years...but now we are moving to another blog that has more features, so it should be better. Please continue on to http://www.blockes2.blogspot.com/ to view our latest news and pictures in the next couple of weeks. The original blockes will still be up and viewable if you ever want to look back on the archives. :) For now, I will finish Fall in a Nutshell with part 2.

Thanksgiving - a little out of order

Elliott learned how to play ping-pong. Jillian and Susan played darts, and Jillian won! :)

Elliott is in awe of the train sets at the hobby shop in Toledo.

Jillian holds the wreath we bought.

Heidi holds up the tree for Brooks

Elliott and Mac help set up the tree, too.

Veteran's Day 2009: Brooks and Susan drove to Milwaukee for the American Orff-Schulwerk Association National Convention. It was great! Here are some of the local Great Lakes chapters represented. Our local chapter, Greater Chicago Area OSA co-hosted.

Elliott's First Haircut

Our neighbor, Wendy, has her own business in her home after working for years at a specialty kid's salon. Here she is getting Elliott covered and settled.

He's watching Thomas during the cut, while holding a Thomas engine and the remote. :)

He's almost done!

Now he looks like a little man! Or a really cute little boy with a man haircut. :)

Fall in a Nutshell, part 1

2009-12-06T17:47:00.006-06:00

LABOR DAY AT BROOKFIELD ZOO
Zebra

Bison

Camels

Emu...I think, and Jillian. SO cute!

Jillian with antlers

I love goats!

Aww...can I take hime home with me? I promise I'll take good care of him!

...I'll love and hug on him...I mean, her....

FUN AROUND THE HOUSE...OR SOMEONE ELSE'S HOUSE...
Leif Erikson Day at Lori's

Playing with the phone on Daddy's nightstand, calling Nana and Grampa

Daddy puts Elliott in his shopping cart for the last time...before he tips over and cuts his lip really good and scares Mommy! It's hard to see your baby bleeding!

I love yogurt so much, I think I'll wear it!

KEITH AND KRISTIN GETTY CONCERT!

Keith, Kristin, Susan, and Brooks, both couples had "In Christ Alone" at their weddings.

The group that went to the concert at Moody.

(left-right, top-bottom) Lynn, Hamille, Lori, Kimberley,

Jayme, Susan, and Brooks

HOSTING 129 AND AN EVENING WITH PASTOR MOODY

Our living room can hold about 30 people...but don't get any ideas.

Summer in Review - Condensed Version

2009-11-08T23:08:00.006-06:00

Here are a few highlights from the summer that weren't the new house. :)

Elliott and Mommy go to the Brookfield Zoo with Papa Zoo on a nice summer day before school starts back up.

We help Nana celebrate turning 60 at Red Lobster.

Daddy, Jillian, and Elliott look for a ball and car in one of his books. This is one of the first times he finds a picture of one of his favorite things and says it.

Taking a walk at the River Walk. Elliott would have jumped in the fountain if we didn't keep a close eye on him.

Jillian's birthday party with friends from Roy De Shane at Nana's house.

Grandpa and Grandma Locke come for a visit around Grandpa's birthday.

On Jillian's birthday, she got 9 pink roses from Mommy and Daddy.

Uncle Bob and Nana came over to help out with the new house. Uncle Bob brought a power saw. Awesome!

Elliott attended his first baseball game -- the Kane County Cougars. He was in awe of the fireworks at the end.

New House, early stages

2009-09-04T22:29:00.007-05:00

Here are the long-awaited, much anticipated pictures (and videos!) of our new house at 1500 E. Thomas Rd. in Wheaton, IL.

Here are some minute-long videos that I took with my new digital camera of the upstairs and downstairs for those that want the tour. :) Sorry if you get motion-sick after watching them!

Upstairs

Downstairs

These are pictures of our new house either before we moved in or just after.

Jillian by the front door from upstairs view.

Elliott getting into trouble, playing with the toliet, in our master bath (small, but MASTER!)

Brooks and Elliott check out the kid's tub in the mirror; kid's bathroom has double sinks. Yay!

Master bedroom. Salem blue

Jillian's room--precious pink

Elliott's room--it's a boy!

Brooks mowing the lawn for the first time--front yard.

Neighbors in our living room for Jillian's birthday; view from kitchen

Same: living room, but you can see the fireplace.

BIG kitchen, complete with many guests to show just how big it is. :)

You can't see the stainless steel appliances, except for the frigde to the left, but you can see outside!

The most recent picture: the new table and chairs. Paint color is green crystal. Loving this room!

I'm finding that my style is country yet modern. Not quite Martha Stewart...more like Martha Stewart on a budget while trying to be a little green and not throw away something good just because it doesn't match perfectly or something. Nonetheless, love the table! Linda says it has formica on the top--good for families with small children. :)

I'll try to put up the newer pictures soon. We are hoping to go to the Brookfield Zoo today with the kids on Labor Day.

Orff Level I Fun!

2009-09-01T14:11:00.005-05:00

After spending two weeks downtown for my Orff Level 1 class, I thought I'd share a few photos. I LOVED it and am thinking about doing Level 2 in the future, but not next year--I have too many other classes to take for my graduate program! Yes, I officially started at VanderCook over the summer. Next year, I will take classes "full time" (more like undergraduate scheduling) for about 6 or 7 weeks. It will be a very busy time, but at least it will be stuff I can use for my job! :)

We did a lot of fun group activities, and at the end of the day we had "Special Topic". We started with the "drumming guy". Here's a group on African drums.

Here's a poem from Dr. Suess that we read and put fun instrument parts to.

Recorder class: we learned about pentatonic scales and playing them on recorder and notating them (or not!)

Here was a really cool poster for a cool silly noise activity in recorder class.

Here are some students playing "metals" on drum day.

This is notation for a xylophone piece we performed called Hiya.

Here's the drum guy showing a real African xylophone.

And a real djembe, and some real African rhythms on the board behind him.

This is my friend, Valerie, who took Intro to Orff with me in March. She's really great! She played tenor recorder in our recorder ensemble.

Brooks came out to see our "sharing day" (aka performance)

I was so happy to see him and share with him!

Fourth of July 09

2009-08-17T09:59:00.006-05:00

The day after Uncle Ricky's funeral was July 4th. I wasn't my usual cheerful self, and Brooks was at bond court. I always liked going to the parade, but wasn't sure it was worth the effort. Then I remembered all the interesting automobiles that are typical in parades and knew Elliott would like it. We got all decked out in our patriotic colors and headed toward Cloverdale for the parade.

Elliott was in awe most of the time, but really liked all the cars and trucks. He waved to them and Jillian collected candy from the different floats that were tossing candy out.

Afterward, we headed to Sheridan to see my family, again, for the scheduled family reunion type event. It was good to see everybody, even if I just saw them yesterday for the funeral.

Elliott played in the rain with Katie. It was so cute!

They had so much fun on this little horse!

Here is the Dix family:

Bobby, Sarah, Katie, and Robert

Elliott had fun with Grampa Jim, too.

So did I. :)

The Russells in their hospitable home in Sheridan.

J.D., Uncle James, Aunt Teresa, Jamie

Uncle Choppy and Nana had to get in on the fun with Elliott, too. :)

I love my big family!

If you enjoy reading this or find something you like, please leave a comment! We won't know that you were here unless you do. :) Thanks! The Lockes

In Memory of Uncle Richard Warren 1958-2009

2009-08-14T09:45:00.013-05:00

On June 30, 2009, while we were furniture shopping, I got the call from my stepdad, Jim, that my Uncle Ricky died at work just a couple hours earlier. Of course I was surprised and devastated, especially since he was one of my youngest uncles, but also after the death of my Grandpa just two weeks earlier, it was hard not to dwell on the worst possible scenarios.
As I started coming to grips with this tragic loss, we attended his funeral on July 3. Elliott was graciously babysat by Bethi Goss, my dear sweet friend from church, so I could sing "Amazing Grace" and Brooks could be a paulbearer. At the funeral, I saw our large family grieve over this sudden and unexpected death of a loved one. It was then that I really started to grieve and really start healing.

Aunt Brenda Warren, my uncle's widow

My dear cousin, Sarah, who I grew up with and was closest to of all my cousins, and her husband Robert Dix.

Sarah's sister and my cousin, Lesa. I think her husband may have taken their four boys home by the time I got this snapshot with her.

Here is a link to a local newspaper report on the accident. It doesn't have any pictures, but it tells what happened, if you want to check it out.

http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090702/NEWS/907020313

A sort of family reunion...

My mom's cousins, Patty, from Sycamore, IL and Karen from Eldon, Missouri, by Lake of the Ozarks.

Aunt Brenda (Montgomery, IL) and Gloria (Roadhouse, IL). Aunt Brenda is mom's sister and Gloria is her 2nd cousin.

Amy Christensen, recently engaged to Drew Merry as of August 1, her birthday. :)

Uncle Jerry and Aunt Cheryl (Pontiac, IL). Jerry is mom's brother.

Jillian, another distant cousin-type relative, and Katie, my cousin's daughter (Sarah and Robert are her parents)

Aunt Shirley came up from Missouri as well, and is my mom's oldest sister.

Uncle James and cousin J.D. are part of Aunt Teresa's family.

Uncle Choppy, Aunt Ann, and my cousin Alesha. Uncle Choppy is my mom's brother.

My cousin Rodney and his wife Sarah. They have a 3 1/2 year old named Annabelle who plays with Jillian and Elliott sometimes when we are all at my mom's house. Rodney's sister is Amy and his mom is my Aunt Sherry.

My cousin David and his wife, Diane; David's parents are Choppy and Ann

David and Diane's two boys, Andy and Alix. Andy is almost done with his Bachelors in Education and wants to be a history teacher. Alix told me he is "staying out of trouble" ;)

Ashlee and her boyfriend, and their son Ayden.

Ashlee and her younger sister, Alyssa

Cousin Peter and his wife, Debbie (Peter has a sister named Debbie Jo, so his wife became known as Little Debbie since she was younger). They are son and daughter-in-law to Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Gladys.

Mom and cousin Mark, who was the one who helped us improve our bathroom at the townhouse. His sister is Debbie Jo and brother is Peter.

Cousin Peter's wife, Debbie (aka Li'l Debbie), 2nd cousin Denise, and cousin Debbie Jo, Denise's mom. Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Gladys are Debbie Jo's parents.

Aunt Sherry (Oswego, IL) and Aunt Teresa (Sheridan, IL), both my mom's sisters

(In the background is one of Peter and Debbie's sons, Aunt Gladys, and Uncle James)

Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Gladys, the globe trotters (well, maybe just RV'ers of the contiguous 48 states)

My dear, sweet friend Bethi offered to help babysit Elliott while we attended the funeral in Morris, IL. It was a long day for us, but Elliott had a great time! I'm thankful that we were able to visit the night before so it would be familiar to Elliott, and boy did it pay off! No tears! Well, that, and I think Bethi is a whole lot of fun! :)

Elliott played with Beatrice, Bethi's daughter for part of the day, when they weren't taking turns taking naps. She has a playpen just like Elliott does!

Susan, Brooks, Bob, and Mom (Bonnie)

Bob, Mom, Jillian, and myself after the funeral was over.

The End of the Road Trip

2009-08-08T22:28:00.014-05:00

Much excitement has happened since the last post, but let's try to go in order, shall we?

Elliott is showing off his two front (top) teeth. We usually don't see a smile that shows them, but I managed to get a picture. :)

DAY 4: D.C. Area, Virginia

Wednesday we were at Busch Gardens, so Thursday we drove to Mt. Vernon, George Washington's home.

The grounds we beautiful, but boy was it hot and humid! And no A/C! Bleh!

Our family with the Washingtons.

Watching the blacksmith.

Jillian asked and listened about how all the tools and hardware on the table were made. She also asked about the coal. We explained that it's the stuff they say you get in your stocking from Santa when you're bad.

That night, we drove to Alexandria to visit two fabulous people, Jon and Ali Hjembo. We met and ate dinner at a great little French bistro called Madeline's. It was very tasty, and the company was even better! :) We had such a nice time catching up. Ali and I took a walk around the area, with Jillian tagging along, and talked babies and married life. I think Ali is such a sweet gal, I'm so glad Jon snatched her up and married her! She's such a sweet and beautiful addition to our, well, extended family (but she seems more like a sister-in-law than my husband's second-counsin's wife). Anyway, I gave her a little early baby gift from Carter's of some baby boy clothes since they are having a boy, and she was so excited! I wish they lived closer so we could spend more time together!

DAY 5: Water Country, U.S.A.

It started out as a tag-team family vacation, taking turns going on water slides and watching Elliott, until Jillian and I met a Navy wife and her 6 year old daughter. It was so long ago now that I can't remember their names, but we had so much fun! The two girls would go on the double-tube rides together and the mom and I would do the same. We met in line for one slide, and went on the raftless lazy river called Hubba-Hubba Highway, together right after. As much as I love my husband and would have loved going on rides with him, this was WAY more fun that what we were originally doing.

Jillian was aprehensive about going on most rides, but with Gabby by her side, she was willing to do anything! I think we tried every single slide by the end, when it was much less crowded. Our days started out slower, but went later, so we knew that Elliott would get a nap in the morning, and we saved money by eating breakfast and lunch in our room at the resort.

After an exciting day at Water Country, U.S.A., we were ready to head home the next morning. Now that I know how to do videos on my cool new camera, AND I can upload them to my computer, then to the blog, perhaps there will be more in the future! Here is my first video attempt, which ended up being two parts (only because I didn't know what I was doing yet). However, it's still way easy to use and to learn. Love it! These videos are so sweet, I hope you enjoy them, too. I put them on Facebook first, then tried them here. I'm so glad it worked!

What goes up...

...is even cuter coming down. :)

DAY 6 (Saturday): Driving Home Part 1

We decided to take a route home that included the scenic mountain roads through West Virginia. Now, you can say all the bad things you want about that state and the people who live there, but it's a beautiful place, and the "folks there sure are nice". Much more friendly than most places I've been. Anyway, here's a sample of what we saw from the road. I even drove a little before we got to the mountains... :) We taught Jillian "Country Roads" on the way to Virginia so we could sing it as we drove through West Virginia. It was so much fun! She still knows the words. :) We stayed the night in Beckley, WV and got some good southern hospitality. :)

DAY 7: Driving Home Part 2--Toledo again, last stop before HOME

We stopped to stay with the Lockes again to spend more time and share about our vacation adventures over dinner. We had a nice visit and left Monday after lunch so we could get back in time for Jillian's swim lessons on Tuesday morning. Phew!

In other news, we had been working on purchasing a house in Wheaton, but didn't tell many people because we were uncertain as to whether or not it was really God's will or just ours, and thus whether it would happen or not. We arrived home, expecting to close on the house soon after (like, that week, being the first few days of July). No closing yet, so we went furniture shopping to see what we could find for the new family room. We decided not to get the sleeper sofa for now, but aren't sure what will be in that room to sit on as of yet. I'll do a post all about the house later.

Williamsburg, first half of week

2009-06-24T22:37:00.011-05:00

The Road Trip Begins

If you haven't checked the blog in a week or more, check out the two posts immediately before, as they are both recent as well.

They are both happy at the same time, yay! Riding in our car before borrowing Grandma and Grandpa Lockes' van.

First Stop: Ohio

Recreating a picture of Brooks at 16 months in the same high chair, eating a banana

Elliott gives "high fives" now.

He loves this book with pictures of trucks--he waves to each one. :)

Surprise from Grandma and Grandpa Locke -- loads of fun.

Second Stop: Pittsburgh

Our welcome at the Babson's :)

The cousins play "together"

Third Stop: Langhorne

Great-Grandma tries to pick up this heavy boy.

How big is Elliott? SO BIG!

Great-Grandma Locke and the great-grandkids and her grandson

Fourth Stop/Destination: Williamsburg, VA

DAY 1: Relax a little at the resort

The baby pool at Williamsburg Plantation.

DAY 2: Colonial Williamsburg

Jillian in period dress for the day at Colonial Williamsburg. Her sash matches her croc's.

Grampa Jim's gift was the dress-up for the day, and she got to keep the bonnet.

I had to tell her not to smile for this one.

I liked Jillian's bonnet. Elliott liked waving bye-bye to the shuttle buses.

Elliott took a short nap in the stroller with Nana and Grampa

The spice lady told us that nutmeg is a hallucinagen if you eat the whole nut.

Aren't they so cute?

Me and Brooks at the Capital (re-created for the third time, we learned)

Fife and drum players outside the Capitol. I couldn't get a pic of them playing because it was too crowded then.

Jillian as the Speaker of the Common inside the Capital, recreating a meeting in May 1776

Jillian and Brooks on the jury...probably Brooks' only time to do it, too.

Tour at the Governer's Mansion, inside.

At the Governer's Mansion...so precious, I had to put it in.

DAY 3: Busch Gardens--way cool! Elliott stayed with Nana & Grampa Jim

Jillian near the entrance with the beautiful blue hydrangea bushes.

Brooks and Jill wearing their 3D glasses for Curse of Darkastle in Germany. We also wore them for a cute story called Corkscrew Hill in Ireland.

We saw lots of cool animals, like these bald eagles, some wolves, and a hawk. We wanted to see the "More Pet Shenanigans" show, but we instead saw an Irish dance one and a rock 'n roll dance and acrobatics show at the end of the day.

Me and Jill on the Katapult.

Me and Brooks on the carousel.

Jillian on the carousel

Brooks and I on a ride together...the only one.

Jillian on a carousel horse.

Griffin: The roller coaster we didn't go on...with 2 90-degree drops.

We rode Le Scoot (log flume) and got drenched, the Loch Ness Monster, Brooks and I took turns on the Alpengeist, and we all enjoyed the Big Bad Wolf and Apollo's Chariot, similar to Raging Bull at Great America. Jillian required some convincing (ok, forcing) to go on some of the rides, but she was fine. She thanked me later for making her go on them. :)

Weather was warm but not very humid or overwhelming. I dressed for the sweltering heat I expected and was delighted to experience some more mild coastal-Virginia climate. Thank the Lord for two beautiful days outside!!! Busch Gardens Europe is really beautiful, I highly recommend it!

In Memoriam: Clarence "Gramps" Neuhauser 1916-2009

2009-06-23T21:18:00.006-05:00

Father August (1883-1921) Mother Amelia (1886-1945) Anita Grunwaldt (1933-1935) Clarence Neuhauser (1916-2009) Ottilia Neuhauser (1916-1993) Lenore Puckett (1947-1993)

Gramps was my last living grandparent until last week. We would visit him at my Dad's house, where he lived for as long as I can remember. My Grandma Neuhauser died in 1993, but she had cancer. My Grandma Warren died suddenly just before Jillian turned 1, in July of 2001. Her husband, Grandpa Warren, died when I was 8 I believe, just 4 days after Christmas. My Great-Grandma Sanders died about 1 year after Grandpa Warren. I wasn't that close to them, but I was glad for the "experience" I had to prepare for losing loved ones as an adult.

Gramps was a WWII vet, so he had a flag on his coffin. I picked out flowers that would match and still be colorful. We didn't have many people there, but I still wanted something nice for my Grampa.

I cried when I got the call from my dad on my cell phone on the way to church that morning. When I saw his number, I was almost certain it was "the call", and unfortunately I was right. We still went to church, but I cried through parts of the sermon as I thought of my grandpa and how my dad was taking things. I did what I could to help--there was so much to do even though the arrangements had been made 3 months prior to him entering the nursing home, as they suggested.

An English garden from the Great-Grandkids.

I helped Dad with some of the arrangements (pastor, flowers, music, getting my older brother here from Arizona, getting readers for the actual funeral, meeting with Pastor Todd, picking scripture passages) so I was pretty busy Sunday and Monday, then the visitation and funeral were Tuesday morning at 10 and 11 respectively. I was SO thankful to see some friends come--just their presence touched my heart so much I began to cry. Stephanie (Hopperton) Perry was the first one there, with 2 kids in tow to boot, who were very well behaved I will add. Later, Sarah and Nathan Lindquist (they are brother and sister) who are friends with Brooks and me, came and I was so blessed by their presence. I doubted anyone from 129 would come due to the timing and late notice, but they did. Katie Stephen came and played piano so I could sing a hymn for the funeral. She was there for most of the funeral, as were Sarah and Nathan. She is such a dear friend (like Sarah) so I was glad to see her as well. Our Pastor Todd Augustine, who performed our wedding and Elliott's dedication, did the service and shared the Gospel with my family, some of which do not know Jesus as their personal Savior from Hell and Lord of all Creation. We were so thankful to have him there.

We processed about 45 minutes from Wheaton to Forest Park. It just started to rain when we arrived at the burial site, which is actually for Grandma Neuhauser's family, Nickel. Her parents, one of her 2-year-old cousins, and her daughter were all buried there, and now Gramps. Pastor Todd kept it short, but then the rain subsided. Mark and Tim, my cousins, sons of my deceased Aunt Lenore, visited their mom while we were there. The grave stone was covered by the turf, so Dad asked the guys to go ahead and lower the coffin, so we got to see all that. It was very emotional for the guys, especially Tim, who was 12 when she died. I tried to be a comfort, but I hadn't seen him since her funeral 16 years ago. Mark had been close to Gramps since he was young, so he was probably the most emotional there. Dad was most emotional when he was on the phone with me, since I started crying of course.

Brooks was a paul-bearer with my cousins, my brother, and my dad, and Tim Hultgren from the funeral home.

Jillian and I got our picture taken by my niece, Lauren.

The part you usually don't see.

Tim takes a photo of where his mom is laid to rest on his phone.

We drove back to Warrenville for dinner at the Courtyard, and we had a really nice time together as a family, catching up on careers and hobbies.

The Neuhauser family: (L-R)Tim Puckett, Susan Locke, Mark Puckett, Gail Chambers, Jillian Locke, Dean Neuhauser, Lauren Chambers holding Elliott Locke, Katie Chambers, Brooks Locke, Judy Neuhauser, Dennis Neuhauser.

It was really amazing.

Mom with Dean and Gail.

After the dinner, we went to Dad's to look through Gramps' stuff and take things that we wanted. My sister, Gail, and I both took the last boxes to sort through later. There were a lot of old pictures and important legal documents, like death certificates, for family members. I have the Bible that was given to my grandparents at their wedding, Gramps' wedding band, and a hymn book that was my grandma's. After that, Dean and Gail, their mom, and my nieces all came over to our house to visit, eat pizza, and play a game of Imaginiff.

Dean, Tim, Me, Gail, and Mark--The Nickel/Neuhauser cousins

It was so nice to be together as a family! Karen (Dean and Gail's mom) may not be my family by blood, but I sure do like her, and I'm glad I get to visit with her when she comes to Illinois and when we go to Arizona. She's like one of my aunts, all of whom I am very fond of. :) I took a lot of pictures, since I like photo journalism, but I posted just a few. This posting has been very theraputic for me. Thanks for reading.

Long Overdue - May and June in Review

2009-06-23T20:16:00.009-05:00

My first picture taken with my new camera!

The kids enjoy taking baths together...for now.

Elliott's new "scrunchy face" which we think is supposed to be a smile for the camera. Here he has an apple that he has been playing with and knawing on, but still no new teeth.

Elliott goes up and down stairs very well now...and likes to try on shoes. Funny, he doesn't like keeping his own shoes on for any length of time.

Happy 1/2 Birthday to Me!

Brooks finally gave me a new digital camera for my 1/2 birthday, so I have been taking lots of pictures, naturally. First, let me explain the 1/2 birthday thing--Brooks and I both have birthdays near major holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas), which is a busy time for everyone, and an expensive time. I got the idea from my friend Sandy to celebrate our 1/2 birthdays (for gift giving) instead of the usual time to make it more special. It's just between us, kinda special. :) So that's why I got a birthday present in June, for those of you who know I'm a December baby. And now, on for a brief 2 month review.

A cute picture of Elliott from bathtime.

Elliott loves anything that cleans floors! The nice lady at Noodles was kind enough to let Elliott and Jillian help vacuum the restaurant while we visited with Bethi and Brian.

Brooks and Elliott with Brian and Beatrice Goss, dear friends of ours. We had dinner together at Noodles before we left on vacation.

Bethi, Beatrice (aka Beabur), and Jillian laughing at another funny Beabur moment. She is so cute and funny!

May--2nd grade Dinosaur program and school ending ate most of my time. Brooks and I stumbled upon a house for sale in Wheaton that was what we have been hoping for and for a price we can handle. The seller is a motivated house-flipper who helped us finance the new house and still keep our current house, but rent it out. He would have bought our house, but the "comparables" in our area are foreclosures and short sales, and it just wouldn't work out. However, Steve found someone who wants to rent our townhouse for 3 years! Yay! We are still waiting for a closing date and some final changes (per the inspection), but we hope to move in mid-July, after I finish my Orff Level 1 certification at VanderCook.

Elliott does his new "scrunchy face" with Aunt Sherry.

June--so much before it was half done! So much, I'll save our vacation pictures for the next post.

Daddy and Elliott taking their first dip of the summer in Nana and Grampa's pool. Friday after we were done for the day, we went out to celebrate!

School ended, got my camera, did some music curriculum revision, and my Grandpa Neuhauser, aka Gramps, passed away on Sunday, June 14. The visitation and funeral were on the 16th, and we left for vacation on the morning of the 18th. I'll share more about Gramps' funeral in the next post.

For now, Brooks is at a local minor-league baseball game with Jim and his brothers, Mark and George. We stayed home and cleaned up, relaxed, and ate spaghetti. I'm sure they are all having a great time. We all went to Williamsburg all day and had a nice time. Yesterday Mom and I went shopping, Brooks took the kids to Jamestown and Jim went pier fishing with his brothers.

If time permits, I will post again tomorrow night after Busch Gardens. We have a limited wi-fi access at the resort, which we had to pay for, and it expires tomorrow night, but I'm not sure what time. Thursday we are supposed to got out for breakfast, then go to D.C. area to visit Jon and Ali, the parents-to-be, and hopefully see Mount Vernon or something else on the way. There will be no posts after tomorrow unless it is a miracle. We hope to go to the water park on Friday and depart Saturday, perhaps stopping by Monticello and Lauray Caverns.

Month in Review

2009-04-30T21:20:00.005-05:00

The month of April started with the Locke family enjoying Spring Break. Jillian spent her week with Nana and Grandpa Abell. Meanwhile, Brooks, Susan and Elliott embarked on a 4-night cruise to the Bahamas and Key West. They all enjoyed a marvelous time aboard the "Majesty of the Seas."

Susan and Elliott get ready to board the cruiseship.

Susan and Elliott check out the underwater views on our glass-bottom boat ride.

Brooks and Elliott pose with the cruiseship in the background.

Elliott gets his feet wet.

The middle of the month brought Easter weekend. We had a wonderful Easter dinner with our friends Sarah and Nathan at their home. Then we went to see Nana and Grandpa for some dessert.

Elliott with Nana showing their pointing skills.

The Locke family on Easter.

Finally, the month ended with a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Locke.

Happy 1st Birthday

2009-03-16T16:33:00.007-05:00

Yes, Elliott did have his 1st birthday on February 19th. We celebrated by having not one, but two birthday parties. The Sunday before his birthday we had a group of our friends over. Many of them have young children as well. Here are few pictures from that party:

The birthday boy with his family.

Our friend Bethi and her baby girl, Beatrice.

Some of our friends enjoying the spread.

Susan made cupcakes for the party. Elliott wasn't quite sure what to make of the candle, . . .

but he sure enjoyed eating the cupcake.

The following Saturday, we hosted all 6 of Elliott's grandparents, as well as his Aunt Gail and her 2 daughters.

Grandpa Locke and Elliott spend some time together before bedtime.

Elliott really likes his presents from Aunt Anne and Uncle Torrey (fridge toys) and Aunt Lesley and Uncle Eric (puzzle).

Yummy cake!!!

Compare this picture to the one from the first party and you can see Elliott is interested in checking out that candle now.

Elliott got his very own cake. He actually ate quite a bit (see above).

Elliott plays his toy drum from Mommy and Daddy, while Mommy reads him a birthday card.

Two of Elliott's favorite toys are the bouncy ball he got from Jillian and the riding truck from Grandma and Grandpa Locke.

Elliott continues to grow. We took him to see the doctor on Friday. He weighs 22lbs. 6oz. (40th percentile) and is 28 3/4" (20 percentile). He currently has his first ear infection. The first round of medicine didn't solve it, so we are trying a second medication. Despite the infection, he is still a happy little guy. We've been enjoying the beautiful weather the past couple of days. Elliott has really enjoyed going for walks in his stroller. Mommy and Daddy like the side benefit that he sleeps really well that night.

Doin' Time Behind Bars

2009-03-01T20:47:00.005-06:00

We finally figured out a way to keep Elliott from the stairs without building our own gate--we just put one in the hall that blocks Jillian and Elliott's rooms from the stairs. It was Brooks' bright idea. My bright idea was to get a gate with a door due to the high traffic nature of the area. It has a kid-proof foot pedal (even Jillian has trouble with it) that allows us to carry him and open the gate, or other heavy objects.

Elliott has mixed feelings about the gate.

Here's him with one of his birthday cards. You can see the grey foot door release pedal in this one. By the way, Elliott LOVED all of his birthday cards!

It looks like he is trying to climb it without success. Or like he is doing a happy dance.

Is he laughing or crying?

This pic is a little better due to flash. Now he's happy for sure.

Not anymore. At least Jillian is staying entertained.

Brooks has stated that he will try to post pictures from Elliott's birthday tomorrow. Please do not ask me about it. Talk to Brooks about it. Bug HIM about it, not me, as I do not want to hear about it.

I was hoping to announce Elliott's cool new skill of walking via video, which he has been doing for exactly 1 month now, but we still haven't figured out how to get them online. So, here is the best I could do in photo.

He's actually pretty good. He was close to getting promoted to the busy and crowdy walker room in the church nursery today, but thankfully they are waiting until he is a little more stable. That room is CRAZY, and I don't want him trampled!

Elliott should be behind bars for his newest feat--putting things in the garbage,...or sometimes the laundry basket, or the toy box. Sometimes he's putting it in the right place, usually not. Mostly he likes to take things out of the garbage, or at least play with the little flap on the lid.

Jillian's easter house craft is coming along nicely so far.
Last, but not least...

A Dozen Roses From Linda

I am a small group leader (with Linda as my wonderful co-leader when I'm not there, like this week when I was at the worst of my sickness) and I had shared last week a prayer request that can only be answered with a miracle or by God giving me a content heart and by trusting Him in the hard times. Linda sent these to my work this week to encourage me, and even though I wasn't there to get them, Mom when and picked them up and we enjoyed them very much being cooped up in the house with all the sickies. Linda is so sweet and thoughtful, and is so good at encouraging me. I still can't believe someone sent me flowers! They are so pretty--I love the mixed color bouquets of roses! It really did encourage me, and I'm thankful. Thanks again, Lins! My small group is just wonderfully amazing--I don't think I could have picked something this great myself! This one goes out to my favorite gals at 129 women's bible study: Jess, Kim, Lindy, Jenny, Ashley, and of course, Linda. You ladies are such a blessing!!! Now I know what my former leaders felt when they said things like that to some of my former groups. :)

On other news flash: we may be switching our blog to another site, very similar, but more updated, which will hopefully allow for more pictures to be posted. We must have started this one before all the cool features were available, so we can't do it with this one. We'll keep you posted about switching if and when we do.

Smiles by Wire

2009-02-23T00:15:00.004-06:00

Want to see some more pictures of Elliott? Click on the link below and enter susan locke in the customer name box. You will see Elliott's 1 year pictures from JCPenney through Smiles by Wire. Feel free to order prints if you like through the site.

https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0646107951JCP

Enjoy!

Bath Time Redefined

2009-02-13T21:46:00.005-06:00

This page has been edited for content 8/9/09

Jillian and Elliott had lots of fun sharing bath time for the first time. There was plenty of splashing and laughing! We put Elliott in a swim diaper to avoid any, well, need to change the bath water, until he actually was bathed.

He looks so happy to have his Ducky!

All smiles!

You can see his swim diaper a little.

Where's Ducky? Silly Jilly put my Ducky on my head!

Elliott's "point" looks like two fingers and a thumb, but we still get the idea. He likes the camera!
However, the second time we did a sibling bath, Elliott wasn't as confident. He wouldn't sit down for more than a moment and constantly wanted my hands on him. Thankfully, he survived, and Jillian introduced him to a new toy from the movie "Monsters, Inc.", Mike, the one-eyed monster. Elliott loves putting him in his mouth! I don't expect another duet bath soon, but maybe in the future.

Catching Smiles

2009-02-07T10:31:00.007-06:00

Elliott's favorite cabinet to get into, but one of the ones we can't lock yet!

Someone commented this week that his nose is orange.

This is what Jillian looks like after a bath.

We finally got some great pictures the other day of Elliott smiling! Jillian likes to smile, too. She has to do 20 minutes of reading EVERY day, so she is on chapter books now. Jillian is doing a great job reading!

Christmas by Mail

2009-02-07T10:10:00.005-06:00

Thank you, Aunt Lesley and Uncle Eric! Thank you Ava!
Jillian was thrilled to open her gift and find "A Snoodles Tale" from the VeggieTales series. We had watched at Masha and Alex's condo back in the summer and Jillian said that one was "her favorite".

Elliott, on the other hand, was excited, but very pokey opening his gifts.
He seemed to look up for help. Jillian finally came to the rescue.

Elliott got some fun textured and colorful balls! He really likes throwing them and chasing them around the kitchen.
He also got a really cute little hammer that makes noise when you wave it. You don't even have to hit anything, just wave it in the direction and it sounds so funny! Thank you!!!

Ok, so here I am adding some text. It seems that when we try to print the blog to send to Grandma Locke in Langhorne,

that there are issues. I tried to print it, but I wanted to make sure it didn't cut anything off, so I tried print preview and much was missing!

The good part was, that when I "shrunk to fit" it, I started to see more pictures. They weren't gone, they just didn't fit.

Now this makes no sense to me, either. So, what I am doing is trying to fix the problem. I was noticing that I can't add text anywhere past the first few pictures, so I'm hoping that if I do, it will help.
We shall see...
In my efforts to do so much as to hit the enter key to try to move down, down it does go, all the way to one of the last pictures. However, that doesn't make any sense either. I am beginning to wonder if this whole blog thing will ever become easier. I have noticed that posting anything to blogger is a pain.
I have so much trouble adding things and moving pictures around, that it is very discouraging.
Ok , so now I'm typing. The funny part about all this formatting that I do when I am composing or editing a page never shows up the same way on the actual blog when it is finished. Ok, so there was no text between these pictures. I am hoping that it is just something I did when I uploaded the pictures and not something crazier.

Christmas

2009-01-16T12:52:00.007-06:00

In regards to Christmas, I thought we had a very nice Christmas season overall. Jillian made out the best with 4 Christmases, we had 3, which was more than enough! I am very blessed to have been able to spend Christmas with pretty much all of my family. The Abells and Wilsons, the Dunkerton/Locke side, and the Neuhauser side. I would say the highlight for me was seeing how surprised and excited Brooks was to get his big gift from me--a Wii system. He usually gets clothes for Christmas, and he always does something really cool for me for Christmas, so since I found the funds and the gift, I decided to go for it! I'm glad I did. Now I just have to make sure Brooks remembers to stand when he plays the sports instead of sitting (especially with bowling, since he has perfected the "sit and spin"--staying seated but getting a great spin on the ball and getting strikes. We don't have any other games or accessories, but I hope that this year will bring some. :) We really liked playing MarioKart with Torrey in Pittsburgh, I love playing DDR, and Tennis is just more fun with 2 players competing simultaneously, which requires another remote. I don't expect us to get too many games, just the ones we can play together as a family and have fun. :) Brooks also got a really cool digital picture frame from his parents that we have on the piano displaying our favorite horizontal pictures. It's really neat!

My parents gave us a Costco membership, which is great since we live so close to Costco and it will certainly help when we have guests over. I was excited to receive an iPod "skin" (flexible cover) to protect my awesome birthday gift from Brooks. :) I like it because it has ridges that make it easier to grip, but it's transparent, so I can still see it. :) I also got some iTunes gift cards from Brooks and my secret santa at work, Marsha, my co-worker. :) Yay! I was also suprised and thrilled to get the new ESV Study Bible from Dad and Mama Locke. It is pretty brown leather and has so much historical stuff in it, I am overwhelmed! It's great and has helped me understand some of the context for some of the passages that I have been reading. Mama Locke picked out a really nice suit from Ann Taylor, one of my favorite stores, and Aunt Nancy gave me some cute tops from Gap (another favorite!) to wear with it. Unfortunately, it didn't fit, and I couldn't find a "suitable" replacement (pun intended) so I got a really cute spring jacket/trench coat/pea coat that is navy blue with white piping. I've been admiring Linda's adorable yellow one, so when I found this, I was THRILLED! I also used my gift cards to Ann Taylor from Linda and Hamille and found some cute sweaters. The pink top that Aunt Nancy gave me is so cute--it's perfect, and I wear it all the time, alone and layered with other things. I LOVE how it is fitted but not clingy, and is very flattering on me, despite my mommy belly. Heidi gave us Scene It? and I look forward to playing that with Brooks and Jillian especially since she has "scene" so many movies! :) Jillian started reading Alice in Wonderland this week, a gift from Aunt Nancy, and she is really enjoying it, and has read some of it to me. We also started reading from her Julie (new American Girl) books from Grandma and Grandpa Locke last week.

We are reading that one together; we take turns reading, since she is at the low end of the recommended reading age for those books. However, I am so glad to have some books that she can "grow into" instead of growing out of. Jillian loves her new webkinz, Pinky Doo (the pink poodle) and Bessy (the cow). We are still looking for Bessy's code, but Pinky Doo is already online. Jillian got a new "bed spreading" set from us for Christmas, and she really seems to like it, even though it wasn't Hannah Montana or High School Musical like she asked for in her top 2. Her #3 choice was one with polka dots, and that wasn't nearly as cute as this one!

It says BLOOM in her new room!

Hope you like the pictures!

Snow Day! I mean, Too Cold Day!

2009-01-16T11:29:00.003-06:00

So, I heard the phone ring this morning, very early, and I KNEW school had been closed for the day due to the cold. I just can't believe how many snow days I have had since I started teaching at Cloverdale! I guess the staff says the same thing...they never had snow days until 3 years ago. In all my growing up years, I never had a snow day until my senior year, and even that was quite a surprise, despite the mountains of snow, since all the other school districts around us closed, but noooo, CUSD #430 NEVER closes. Not anymore! They must have a new superintendent, too. :) Yay! Keep those kids safe! However, since we didn't have school today, my observation got moved to Tuesday. Please pray that it goes well like the other 2! I want to get tenure!

We had school yesterday, despite all the other districts staying open...rumor has it that it is because Glenbard North, the local high school had finals yesterday and they refused to close, and all of its feeder schools therefore didn't close, either. Well, finals must be over now! I just hope we don't have anymore, especially while I am in Peoria!

Yes, in less than 2 weeks, I will be in the amazing Peoria, IL! No, it's not really that amazing. It's just IMEA All-State Conference. I get to go to all sorts of cool workshops (instead of going to school) and get CPDU's and better yet, I get all sorts of new ideas and stuff for my class and students! Yay! We just got all new curriculum (and I have 2, the one we picked and the one we didn't pick!) PLUS a bunch of other great resources. It has been so overwhelming going through them, but I decided to just go through as much of the core stuff (just the main curriculum and the secondardy one) and then next year I will explore more of the other supplimentary materials. I just am not sure what to do with the rest of the old stuff! Ooh, I just got an idea--I could donate them to the Elmhurst College curriculum library collection! Then, I would still have access to them, if I really needed something, but then others could use them, too! I'll have to look into that so I can make room for the stuff I will actually put to use. :) The other books aren't bad, just not being used. They are older, and if the district is spending all that money on new stuff, I should at least try to make use of them!

Jillian and I are staying warm at home today while Daddy is in a court hearing for a case that was going to be very hard to prove that the suspects were guilty (although common sense would tell you that they must have been involved based on some of the facts). However, as long as the documents that the victim has (estimating the value of what was stolen) are enough, Brooks will be in a much better situation in this case. He told me he is taking a risk by not having an expert present to testify, rather that just documents, so I am praying in my heart that it goes well. I feel very sorry for the poor victim. You can ask Brooks more about it...I don't want to post more details here.

Mac has joined us and is listening to the Princess Diaries Soundtrack with us. :) Jillian is wearing a cute purple vest that she got from Aunt Nancy and Uncle John for Christmas. I am still in my pajamas...hey, I don't get to do that often! ;) Elliott has been with my mom since Wednesdsay afternoon in anticipation of the poor weather and driving conditions. After Brooks gets home, we are going to do a kid swap--Elliott comes home, Jillian goes to Nana and Grampa's house for the long weekend. We all miss Elliott very much, but it has been a good opportunity to get him more comfortable with the Abell house since he will be doing the same when we go to Peoria...yes, Brooks is coming with! He is off for the weekend after bond court on Thursday, so he decided to join me! I think it will be fun to drag Brooks along with me and see what we do when we go to IMEA. I just hope he enjoys it, too. :) Today is Grampa Jim's birthday, so when we do our kid swap, we will get to eat chili and Boston creme pie (for those who like it) to help him celebrate. He still had to go downtown for work today, so I'm sure he is looking forward to his pie tonight!

Ms. Purple is cutting a rug here in our bedroom to a song from Princess Diaries called "Happy Go Lucky" by Steps. She is so cute!

I will post more about Christmas later. It may not be today, but I will make the goal of having it done by the end of the weekend. Happy Birthday, Martin King Luther! (Jillian is so cute!)

Winter Wonderland

2008-12-23T11:47:00.004-06:00

Elliott is napping, so I thought I would share the views I've been enjoying--snow and Christmas tree!

Our tree--a little blurry, and very modest in size, but pretty! Hamille helped us decorate while JP was in Switzerland. Elliott has since done some "redecorating".

Look at all the presents! And this is the second batch to fill the space under the tree--Mom took most of them to her house for our Christmas night festivities.
Yes, it's a small space under a small tree, but I've never seen it look like this before! I'm looking forward to everyone opening their gifts!

THE BACK YARD

These photos were taken literally minutes ago, so they are the current weather conditions here. It's not bad, but Brooks dealt with a flat tire the other day. We opted to try taking it in today versus yesterday (with a high of 1 degree Farenheit plus the wind chill!) So, it's warm enough to snow, and I think it would have snowed the last two days if it hadn't been so cold.

OUT OUR FRONT WINDOWS

It's been quiet around here without Jillian, but it has been good for me to spend a little more quality time with Elliott. Before she left, we did have some family fun together watching "Elf".
It was cute how the characters in the movie dialoged about the "rumor" going around that there is no Santa Claus and that the parents do it. Jillian piped up and said, "I believe in Santa Claus!" Well, that answered my question! Last year, she questioned us after hearing the "rumor" from a boy in her class. Another year of magical fun!

While I miss her very much, I am thankful to have so much time to wrap gifts in peace and listen to my wide array of Christmas music. I LOVE iTunes! I can get all the songs I want for only 99 cents each and none of the songs I don't want. AND I can shop from home in my nice warm penguin jammies and enjoy them right away. A music geek must have invented this whole concept. :)

Merry Christmas! Yay Jesus!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2008-12-22T23:14:00.008-06:00

Merry Christmas from the Lockes!

Christmas is only a few days away and we are in full holiday spirit. The pile of packages under the tree is growing daily (mainly thanks to Susan's willingness to wrap all the present). Most of our Christmas cards are in the mail (still missing a few addresses). The past month has been extremely busy as we celebrated Brooks' and Susan's birthdays and Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful visit from Brooks' parents and grandmother for Thanksgiving. It was Grandma's first visit to our home. She seemed to have a wonderful time seeing her great-grandchildren.

December also brings the annual holiday program at Susan's school. This year she had the 5th graders put on a show entitled "The X-Mas Files." It was a very cute show about sightings of alien creatures, such as little green men and creatures with advanced antennae on their heads.

2008 has been an eventful year. We hope that you have enjoyed the pictures and written updates about the events of the past year. We thank God for the blessings he has given us this year! We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Happy 9-Month Birthday

2008-11-20T23:00:00.004-06:00

On November 19, Elliott celebrated his 9-month old birthday! While he didn't get a birthday cake, he did celebrate by adding a new sound to his growing vocabulary. He now loves to say "bwah, bwah, bwah, bwah." As you can see he loves sitting at the piano. He is so intrigued by the different sounds. I took Elliott to see the pediatrician on Monday. He now weighs 19lbs. 13oz. and is 26 3/4" long. We are all looking forward to Thanksgiving as Grandma and Grandpa Locke and Great-Grandma Locke will be coming to visit.

Week in Review

2008-11-01T20:55:00.003-05:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Jillian and Elliott celebrated Halloween. Jillian dressed up as a black cat, while Elliott wore a little monster outfit. We picked Elliott's costume because it was the closest thing to a lizard costume. When we picked it, Ellliott liked to stick his tongue out a lot. Jillian got lots of candy when we went trick-or-treating. Elliott just enjoyed the stroller ride. Later in the evening, we went to a Halloween party hosted by Susan's friends Jeremy and Linnea.

Earlier in the week, we all enjoyed a visit from Grandma Locke. She stayed with us for 3 nights while Grandpa Locke was on a business trip to South Africa. Elliott and Jillian had fun hanging out with Grandma and we all enjoyed her cooking.

Jillian and Elliott pose with Nathan Perry for the camera.

Last Sunday, Susan was the sponsor for Brianna Perry at Brianna's baptism.

Brianna Perry's baptism with Bob, Stephanie, and Nathan Perry and Brianna's sponsors looking on.

What Did We Ever Do Without Cameraphones?

2008-10-23T23:18:00.003-05:00

This post comes to you thanks to the technology of the cameraphone. Do you ever wonder how someone came up with the strange idea of putting a camera in a cellphone? Well, they sure come in handy in capturing some fun moments. Here are a few of my favorites:

Elliott got to spend some time at Daddy's work. Here he is hanging out with Diane while Daddy did some faxing. Thanks to Diane for this adorable picture!

There's the handsome boy happy to see Daddy. As you can see Elliott is standing pretty well while holding on to something. He loves to stand at the side of his crib.

Jillian's school had a fundraiser night at our local Culver's. Here's Jillian with Scoopie!

Jillian is supposed to read for 20 minutes on school nights. Elliott provides a great captive audience for her reading.

In September, we spent a Saturday at Great America with Susan's sister Gail and her daughter's Katie and Lauren. Elliott is showing tremendous fashion sense by borrowing Lauren's sunglasses.

We made a "quick" stop at Babies R Us recently. Instead of lugging the whole family through the store, I stayed in the car with the kids. After awhile, Elliott was getting fussy, so I got him out of his carseat. Next thing I knew he was ready to drive us home!

In other news:

It's hard to believe that in a little over two months it will be Christmas! Where has the time gone? Elliott turned 8 months old this past Sunday. At his last doctor's visit he weighed in at 17 lbs. 15 oz. and measured 25 3/4". In the past two weeks he has started crawling. It's very cute to see him move across the floor like an inchworm. He pulls himself forward with his forearms only.

Jillian is doing pretty well in 3rd grade. She has a lot more homework this year, so that takes most of her time after school. She has also begun taking piano lessons. So far she seems to enjoy it, although her idea of practice is playing each song twice.

Susan is working hard at incorporating her new curriculum and textbook series into her lesson plans at work. This coming Tuesday she is getting observed by her new principal during her 2nd grade class. I'm still enjoying my work schedule of working 3-4 nights a week. It has been great to be home so much during the day. Susan and I enjoyed our first night away without kids on Columbus Day weekend. We stayed at a bed and breakfast near Starved Rock State Park. We had spent one night at the same B&B during our mini-honeymoon right after our wedding.

Well, I'm off until next Monday night, so I'm going to go get a good (and hopefully uninterrupted) night's sleep.

Moody with Raw Buns

2008-09-29T00:00:00.002-05:00

Ok, so Brooks hasn't exactly posted anything recently, so here's a quick update:
Elliott has had diarreah for a few days now and his poor little bottom is so red! He cries when we wipe! :( We have put breastmilk and vasoline on his butt to help heal and protect his bottom from more pain as well as corn starch to hopefully make it less intensely acidic. It seems to be helping, although the thing that will help the most is when this virus finishes running its course through my poor, sweet baby! We have been airing his bottom out, too, which helps as well.
Also, 92% of the voting members (about 760 members voted) approved the recommendation to call Dr. Josh Moody as our senior pastor. The committee said they would call him tonight, so I'm guessing he already knows and is thinking and praying about it. I really like him--I hope he comes!!!!
Finally, Go Redskins! They defeated the Cowboys! Brooks has a new sports buddy, Nathan. He is the brother to my friend and fellow musician (Suzuki instructor of violin) Sarah. I'm glad. It was a little dull listening to them talk football at lunch today, so as long as I have someone else to talk to, I should be ok. :)
Poor Hamille is sick! I took her some soup and other goodies to help her feel better. She can't get around by car because JP is gone till tomorrow and the apartment has a leak in the wall...poor sweet Hamille! I'm so glad we could help her out this week! I'm going to be so busy this week!
I should have my program CD tomorrow and thus will start teaching the songs a such to my students. I have lesson plans to finish tomorrow, meeting Tuesday, church Wednesday, meeting with prayer support team for Jon and Fran Thursday night, BUNCO Friday night, Brooks' homecoming Saturday, and this week I have to plan a birthday party for Linda to occur Sunday night! PRAY FOR ME!!!! I need sleep, too! Pray for Elliott's poor, sore little bum!
Brooks is STILL at the Augustine's playing Rook...lucky little stinker! ;)

Flooding, taking a sabbatical

2008-09-14T21:50:00.004-05:00

So this is a post to our blog to report on flooding in Carol Stream and to announce my sabbatical from posting to the blog. I posted this old but adorable picture because I don't have any new ones--no time. In my absence, my husband, Brooks, has been placed in charge of all blog update activity. He has been faithful in this recently, however the content is questionable in nature, since it involved my son wearing a Cowboys jersey. I will admit that he looks quite adorable in it, but it should be a BEARS or Redskins jersey. I will have to talk to my brother about getting something for him, although I bet Diane will get one first. She's the one who dressed Elliott as a White Sox fan even though Brooks likes the Orioles and I'm for the Cubbies, and Red Socks. I'll take that over those crazy Texans. "America's Team" my foot! The president could name them our national team and I still wouldn't budge! Oh well--I must say that it makes our lives a little more colorful.

Anyway, flooding news. I don't have any, except that school is canceled for tomorrow, Sept. 15, 2008. I got 3 calls, yes, 3, from our superintendent Hank Gmitro regarding school cancellations, including one from our school phone tree. Cloverdale's phone tree hasn't even been updated for the year, since we usually don't start cancelling school until after Thanksgiving. I hope all the new employees got the district message. I get to call someone new this year because the person I called last year resigned. Don't know why, but I do know she had a change of position last year after one of our colleagues died of cancer. :( Anyway, I have not personally seen the flooding in Carol Stream except to see the intersection we take to Jillian's school blocked off (due to water) on our way to church this morning. We saw plenty of flooding at Lincoln Marsh and Elliot Lake just north of the marsh. You almost couldn't read the signs the water was so high. Our home is in a higher area and it seems that it was well developed considering all the problems this constant rain has caused. We have lake in our neighborhood that usually isn't there, but otherwise we're safe. Praise the Lord! A co-worker had to evacuate her home due to massive flooding. :( I heard from the 5th grade teacher that calls me on the phone tree. I'd appreciate if you prayed for Katie F. and her family.

Elliott started sitting up with more stability this week, so that makes it easier to accomplish tasks with him nearby. I can carry him to a spot in the house where I need to do something, like prepare his solid food dinner, and he's happy and safe next to me. He has been very upset whenever he sees me leave his presence, which is heartbreaking but I'm glad to know he's so fond of me. :) Jim says it's because I provide him with his primary food source, but I bet he would love me just as much if he was bottle fed. He gets at least 3 bottles a week when he is with Mom and at least 2 more when Brooks is home with him. Then they feed him solid food more than I do. Oh well!

Jillian's reading is really impressive! Tonight she was reading an email survey that Mama Locke filled out and returned to me, but as it got later, she quickly went downhill. I knew it was time for bed then! It was an hour past her bedtime, but she doesn't have school tomorrow. :) I love the way she cares for Elliott. You can tell they are buddies by the way he looks at her when he wakes up in the mornings. He always has such a big smile on his face, it warms my heart so much! I wish I could stay home with him and enjoy him even more!!!

Work has been very exhausting. Some of my classes are more draining that others due to classroom management demands, but Brooks has really been encouraging me to "crack the whip" and not give my little "testers" any room, and it has really helped. Not having kindergarten this year has been a blessing, too, because not only do I have less trouble, but I have smaller classes overall, which is the right thing to do. I don't think it's fair for us specialist to be expected to teach huge classes when the classroom teachers have no more than 25. However, next week I start losing students to the math support program that pulls them out of specials (aka CATs: Comprehensive Arts Team--Art, Gym, Health, Music, Drama/Dance) for about half of the time. Normally, those are students I don't miss, but this year's third graders who qualify are some of my favorites! :( I just hope this program helps them enough to graduate them soon! :) Anyway, another draining part of work is meetings--we have had quite a few recently, from staff meetings to team meetings to TARGET meetings (team meets with administration) to Professional Learning, which I don't want to go into, except that it's the district-wide approach to meeting the academic needs of students, and I think it's one of those wonderful NCLB pieces of legislation. :P Our first meeting was announced only a few hours before it was to begin...and took up all of our lunch and most of our plan time for the day. YUCK! I was thankful for once that I had to pump, so I missed the first half (pumping takes about 25 minutes of my time, if I'm super organized and I have access to the office I've been given permission to use; rarely do I get both on the same day!) thanks to that, then I had to heat up my lunch (oh darn!) I want to help my students reach their academic potential, but I feel like they have very high expectations of us specialist--meeting our own state standards, assessing them on those, integrating between our special disciplines through vocabulary, cross-curriculum articulation, and now being expected to reinforce what they learn in reading, math, and the like. So, as you can see, it's a little exhausting at work. I also have lots of new materials in addition to my new textbooks to get used to (and modify for my classes since lots of their ideas are cheesy and ineffective--I know because I've tried them!!) I usually wake up before Brooks, have more to do to get ready, including feeding Elliott twice before I leave, then getting to work to do my job in an overwhelming setting. There is so much to do and plan and think about that I find that I am becoming less effective...oh wait, I have a family, too?

It's going to be easier NEXT YEAR, RIGHT?

That's what I keep saying, every year since my first year.

It had better be!!!! It was true my second year teaching, but not as much as I would have hoped beyond that...yet. :)

I am surviving by God's good grace alone, which He has provided mostly in getting me through the day, having such an amazing husband (despite his love of those crazy Texans) and two great kids. Seeing how much Elliott loves me really cheers me up. His "need" for me is discouraging, since I usually come home and have so much more to do, and I'm exhausted. This weekend has been very restful, and having tomorrow off will help, too. I hope to get some lesson planning done for next week, which will hopefully help my load next this week...Lord willing and the creeks don't rise! (Oh wait, too late! Was that a terrible pun or what?)

In other news...A new girl to 129 that is from Texas (but lives in Chicago with her in-laws as of recently) and her son, Jack, came to church today and Lauren sat with us. She sat with us in 129 and then came out to lunch with us to Corner Bakery. Jack just turned 2, and is a cute blondie with blue and green eyes who knows many colors, but calls grey "mouse". :) Isn't that cute? He was initially afraid of me at the beginning of class, but he warmed right up to Jillian (of course, who wouldn't?) and was friendly with us after that. When he saw us in line at CB, he ran up to me with his arms out for me to hold him...out of the blue! It was so sweet! I can't understand most of what he says, but he's a cutie and he really likes Elliott, too. He actually says his name pretty well! Anyway, a bit of info on Lauren--she's a widow. Her husband drowned on a recreational boating trip when Jack was only a few months old. I'm sure she was so sad and devistated, but her testimony is so powerful! She read Elizabeth Elliot's book (before the accident) and it was such an encouragement to her, knowing how Elizabeth continued to minister to the people that took her husband's life. Lauren said that she was married for the same amount of time that E.E. was...wow! She is so strong, and I pray that God would use her, and Elizabeth Elliot, to minister to me if that ever happened to me. I tell Brooks that he's not allowed to die before me because I would be waaaay too devistated. I'm the emotional one, so I wouldn't handle it as well. However, he seems reluctant to agree anymore since he tells me he doesn't know what he would do without me...at least I know I married the right guy! :) I need to pray that God would work in my heart on that one, making sure my priorities are straight, but He keeps it real. I'm head-over-heels for Brooks, but his marathon football watching does get under my skin by the 10th quarter (yes, multiple games in a row), so that helps me remember that God is the only one that I can truly rely on--He will never abandon me for football!!!! :)

I still wouldn't trade my husband for another--any day!

Well, I think this last blog has gotten long enough. Hasta el verano!

Susan

It's Football Season!

2008-09-09T19:26:00.004-05:00

Dad and Elliott get ready to cheer on the Cowboys!!!

Doesn't Elliott look great as a Cowboy?

Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho, it's off to work I go...

2008-08-21T23:46:00.003-05:00

Needless to say, I've been keeping busy this week, getting my room ready for another year of Music classes. I haven't been very excited about it, but I got a bunch of cool new materials in the mail from DO (District Office) to go with our new textbooks and suppliments for them, so I'm getting more excited. I also am enjoying getting rid of more old junk from the previous music teacher to make room for the cool new stuff.

One thing that has made this week feel more comfortable is my Mom. She is taking very good care of Elliott and Jillian and our home, too. She helps out with things like laundry and loading the dishwasher and stuff. I have a much more peaceful feeling about going back to work, even if I would prefer to be home with Elliott myself until he's at least 1 year old. They are, you know, only this little for a short time.

I had a PartyLite show tonight at my place and while I had only 2 guests, we still had a good time. Linda and my neighbor, Giusy, came by and sniffed candles and ate cake. It was pretty good considering that Thursday night seemed to be a bad night for everyone else I invited.

I hope to post stuff from COTW soon, but that may have to be Brooks' job. Overall, I enjoyed it very much. There was so much good stuff, that the only thing I could think to suggest to improve for next time would be: pray for less rain, and don't bring a baby if it can be helped. Some of the highlights were spending time with the family, learning 4 new games, getting to know Lesley and Eric and Ava, and being able to walk everywhere. The chapel service speaker was great and the concerts were fun, too. But since I'm a people person, and I also enjoy games, I think my favorite part was playing skipbo and other fun games with Eric and Lesley. I didn't know them at all really before Camp, and once again, I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed them, just like when I met Karl and Alyssa, and others. I just didn't know what to expect, and it turned out fantastic!

Well, I'm very tired and it's getting very late. Time for bed!

For Mom and Jim

2008-08-15T12:55:00.003-05:00

From Camp-of-the-Woods
on Lake Pleasant
in Speculator, NY
home of the
Adirondack Mountains
With Love, from Susan and the Fam

The most current pictures of Elliott so far.

I almost caught a smile...

Jillian and Ava (her cousin) at the mini golf course last night.

Brooks, Elliott, and Jillian on Monday for the big Dunkerton family reunion pictures.

Hope you like! We have had a pretty fun week and we miss you! Wish you were able to be here with us!

Love,
Susan

PS-Watch your mailbox!

Mommy Thoughts

2008-08-06T21:46:00.003-05:00

Tonight we visited with dear friends, Damon and Crystal Schroeder, who you may remember from our wedding...Damon read scripture and Crystal was a bridesmaid with dark, curly hair. Jillian played with their children, Abby, Stephen, Grace, and Silas. It was a visit long overdue, as we last saw the Schroeders before Silas could talk, and he turns 4 on Monday!

Damon grilled out and Crystal prepared salad, veggies (tomatoes and cucumbers, my favorite ;) and chips. They all enjoyed taking turns holding and playing with Elliott, to the point of our hosts holding Elliott while we ate, and they refused to have it any other way! It was so nice to have a (mostly) quiet meal for a change. Elliott really seems to seek the most attention at some of the most challenging times, like meal times. The Schroeders are so kind and patient and encouraging, and they have fun children. They aren't monsters, but they aren't perfect angels, either. :) They have a loving home and I always enjoy our visits there.

Crystal talked to us about a variety of things, including home schooling, home birthing, and cloth diapers, but never pressured us to any of the above, which was very nice. While we will use cloth diapers when my mom starts babysitting (her idea, she offered!), home schooling isn't in our future, and I doubt home birthing is either.

Lately, I've been thinking about going back to work, and what a struggle and big transition it will be. Of course I would love to stay home with Elliott and get Jillian on and off the bus every school day and make dinners and clean house every day, but in reality, we can't do it financially. Could we do it if we spent less? Maybe, but we do have some debt, the biggest being our mortgage and Brooks' law school student loans. Perhaps if we were debt-free *and* didn't need to save for car, emergencies, repairs, etc. we could do it. Or if Brooks worked for a firm and made twice as much, and was home 1/2 as much as he was before screening...sigh. I'd prefer to have him home, and he knows it, and he agrees.

So, in my recent efforts to prepare myself to rejoin the full-time working world, I thought I would ask a friend who had a baby (more recently) before me what their experience was like. I thought of Sarah, who was a middle school teacher, but declined tenure (for very good reasons) and opted to be a stay-at-home mom. Then I thought of Jess, who had been wanting to quit her job for years, and did so when she had Jack. I remembered Karen, who used to missions with an organization helping orphans in Ukraine and Russia, but her 4 year commitment ended just before Ann was born. And Kate was a vet tech until Megan was born...all of my closest friends (in proximity) became stay-at-home moms! None of them returned to work!!! I'm the only one who will be juggling my family (especially my sweet baby!) and my career! :(

I feel...alone-ish. Yes, Brooks is here. That's not the point. Yet another thing seems to separate me from some of my friends. I don't know...I guess I'm jealous? What do you think? It's getting late...time to let the pondering rest for the night.

Jillian's Birthday week

2008-08-04T13:14:00.004-05:00

I'm back. After much harrassment, I'm finally posting to the blog again. Here's a recap of the past week.

Jillian got an early start to her birthday celebration when Grandma and Grandpa Locke came for a brief visit 10 days ago. Among her presents from them were this purple sun dress . . .

and Anne of Avonlea, the second book in the series.

Jillian was in a summer music camp at church all week. Friday night the kids performed a show called "Power." Jillian had two speaking parts (total of 4 lines), first as Shadrach, then as a person on the street. She did a great job and even pronounced Nebuchadnezzar correctly. The picture is from the reception afterwards.

Jillian discovered this week that she could ride a bike without training wheels after all.

On Saturday, we had Jillian's birthday party at Nana's house. A grand total of 10 kids, plus parents enjoyed a beautiful sunny day by eating hot dogs and swimming in the pool.

Jillian and her neighbor friend Mia.

And don't forget the ICE CREAM CAKE!!!

Jillian received a number of great presents, including 4 different Barbies!

My cousin Heidi arrived Saturday evening. We had a great time going to a Chinese restaurant, walking around downtown Wheaton, and going to church on Sunday. We can't wait to spend more time with her this weekend at COTW.

Heidi got to meet Elliott for the first time.

Elliott is really enjoying his new bathtub!!!

It's a long one...

2008-08-04T10:45:00.011-05:00

FINISHING UP THE ROADTRIP!
Of course I wish this had happened sooner, but our wireless availability was zilch after we left the Blairs, and other things have been keeping us busy. However, I hope to get everything up-to-date soon...Jillian is staying with my parents this week before we go to C.O.T.W. so we'll see what kind of time I have!

SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND - THE BLAIR RESIDENCE

We had a lovely visit with the Blairs, and I also got to meet Stefanie Campbell and her daughter. Stefanie and Brooks grew up together, and I got to meet her parents briefly at our Forcey visit 3 years ago. The girls played together very nicely, and Stefanie is expecting again. She taught Meredith and Austin in school (kindergarten) but now she stays at home full time. This is the part where I sigh and remember that I will be returning to school in just a couple of weeks, and leaving my sweet baby at home. I'm thankful that my mom will be taking care of him, but I will certainly miss him a lot. It will be a very busy and hectic time, but God will help me get through another year of teaching and being away from my baby.

Anyway, Joan took lots of great pictures of this visit, so here are a few.

Stefanie, Amelia, and the Lockes (minus Elliott, who was sleeping).

Jillian enjoyed playing with Austin, especially on his PSP.

The Lockes go blue for the day.

SILVER SPRING (area), MARYLAND

We didn't manage to get any pictures from the great reunion-style party that Kristy hosted at her parents' home, so here's the verbal synopsis.

There were tons of people from Forcey, and of course, since they aren't the friends that I grew up with, I can't remember all of their names, but I'll try to recall a few: Cyndi, Beth & Brian, Micah & Heather, Zarnez, Mike and his new bride, and of course Kristy and Rhonda. We also got to meet Kristy's boyfriend, Brendan? The group helped celebrate Zarnez's birthday, too.

The next day, we got to visit Kristy's pottery studio, and we even got to paint our own pottery! Jillian and I made gifts, and Elliott got in on some of the fun, too, while Brooks and Kristy visited. I got to make a trivet with ivy on it to go with my green and ivy kitchen. Yay! Thanks, Kristy!

We just got them, like, minutes ago! It all looks great and nothing was broken. :)
Jillian's princess crown

My ivy trivet :)

DAMASCUS, MARYLAND

I finally got to meet Mr. and Mrs. Karl Hjembo! They were in Germany for the past 3 years where Karl was stationed. Now they live in a home that Alyssa's grandmother inherited. It's nothing new, but Alyssa and Karl have done such an amazing job making it look beautiful and more up-to-date. I was so impressed with how much they did in such a short time. Alyssa is an excellent cook, too!

We also got to meet the future Mrs. Jonathan Hjembo, Ally (I may have misspelled her name...). They are getting married on October 4, 2008--yes, that's soon! They shared some of their wedding plans with us, and it sounds like it will be a beautiful event. It sounds like Ally will make her own wedding gown, too!

Mr. and Mrs. Hjembo and Mr. Hjembo and the future Mrs. Hjembo. :)

The very happily engaged couple--it's quite clear in person, even if it's not in this picture. :)

This picture is supposed to recreate the "tripartite talks" they had in Maryland.

The ladies wrapping up before the bride-to-be and groom-to-be have to leave.

Jillian and Gregory playing with his train sets.

Jillian, Gregory, and Ethan, chillin' on the couch.

I thought this was a cute picture, so I put it in. :)

It was so nice to finally meet Karl and Alyssa! I'd heard so much about them, and we had such a great visit with them!

FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA

We stopped at a Panera in Virginia to visit with Jeremy and Stacy Root and their sweet daughter, Susannah Margaret. They adopted her last November I believe. One of the restaurant patrons assumed that the two babies were twins. It was cute. :)

The Root family--aren't they adorable?! They were such kind people--I enjoyed getting to know them and spending some time with them. It has been a long time since Brooks has seen them (I was meeting them for the first time, if that gives you any indication) so I'm glad we were able to see them, even if it was relatively short.

I tried to get them all in there...oh well. It's still a cute picture.

LANGHORNE, PA

After many long days of travel, we were able to relax a bit and spend some great time with (Great) Grandma Locke. Brooks and I were able to help her by pulling some weeds and some carrots (which were not planted this year--somehow they planted themselves from last year!)
Grandma took us out to eat at Michael's as a thank you. :)

Here are some great pictures of Grandma with Elliott! She was wonderful with him!!!

Aww...

Snuggle buddies.

Elliott gets some time with Great-Grandma before going to bed. Notice the shark jammies.

"I wish I could stay in Great-Grandma's arms all night!!!"

Dear Grandma Locke,
Thank you for the wonderful hospitality! We had such a wonderful visit and we look forward to seeing you again soon! We would love to have you visit us in Carol Stream, so we can see you sooner, too!
Love,
Susan and Brooks

PITTSBURGH, PA

Elliott got to meet his cousin, James, as well as Torrey and Anne. We had such a nice visit we didn't want it to end so soon! We also got to attend church with Torrey and Anne on Sunday. Torrey made yummy chicken that reminded me of brushetta. I'm not a tomato fan, but it was still delicious!

They must be family!

Brooks is introduced to MarioKart (Game Cube version) and he and Torrey had much fun competing!

Jillian liked it a lot, too, and moves with the turns--it's cute.

Elliott borrowed James' bumpo chair and was much more content sitting up. Thanks! Isn't this a sweet picture of him?

Elliott sits and watches his big sister play Mario Kart.

Anne and Torrey were so sweet to throw a little birthday party for Jillian! We had cupcakes, ice cream, and Jillian even got some fun gifts!

Anne scoops some ice cream and Elliott asks Daddy if he can have some, too. Daddy looks at Mommy, but he already knows the answer is "no."

The men with the boys :)

The Lockes in Pittsburgh--what a lovely home the Babsons have here!

Overall, we had a great road trip east. It was wonderful to meet (yes, I'm still meeting folks!) and see so many friends and family. Jillian and Elliott did very well keeping each other company, so that made it much more enjoyable for us all. We are now looking forward to driving to Camp of the Woods for some extended family fun!

Elliott's Latest Fun & Our Hip New Hangout

2008-07-30T16:54:00.004-05:00

First meal on the patio - It's finally approved and finished!!!!
Mama Locke and Dad Locke stopped by on their way to Minneapolis and were able to enjoy it with us. We are glad it worked out this way since Dad Locke put so much time and effort into the foundation of it. Wow, I get to be in a picture for a change!

OK, time for something more recent now that I finally finished writing about Florida...from a month ago!

Elliott eats rice cereal!

On the patio!

With Jillian!

He was fussy before we got the spoon close to his mouth the first time, then...

...boy, did he settle down and eat! His tongue is still working on the proper mechanics of eating solid food,...

...but his mouth knows what to do!!!

Today is Jillian's birthday--I will post from our festivities as soon as I have pictures, unless we don't get any. Then I'll just have to write about it.

St. Augustine, FL - Finishing Up

2008-07-30T16:18:00.004-05:00

St. Augustine - A city of history, wild beaches, and heat. Here is a lovely view from the lighthouse.

When we first arrived, we went to the beach. A storm was in the forecast, but we still had time to have some fun before it arrived. The waves were ferocious and merciless to my poor parents. Mom lost her Rx glasses one of the many times she got knocked over, and Jim got pulled across the jagged shore of broken shells and had major scratches to prove it. I stayed on shore with Elliott for the most part. Jillian had pieces of broken shells all in her hair, and the guys came home with pockets of it in their swim trunks. It was cool to see the storm approaching, but we got rinsed off and hurried out of there before it got too close. The loud thunder was enough for me! After the rain passed, we walked to the historic section of the city, with shops, sweets, and restaurants, and lots of people offering ghost tours.

To represent the history part, here are some really old tombstones from a cemetery that we passed. Jim wanted to seem some ghosts, so he and Brooks went on a "ghost tour" but they just heard stories about ghosts.

My First Lighthouse Adventure

This trip marked my first time going into a lighthouse. It was a great museum and it was "fun" climbing the stairs to the top. It's pretty stuffy at the base, but the higher you go, the more you feel the cool Atlantic breeze. To think, the keeper used to lug a big bucket of oil up all those stairs.

St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum

The view of the surrounding beaches from the top of the lighthouse.

Spiral staircase--don't look down or you'll get dizzy!

I look way too happy to be climbing all those stairs. It wasn't really that bad, but I tried to take it easy, pausing on the landings as needed. I wasn't there to work out or sweat more.

Jillian was hoisted up into this window sill by Grampa to wave at us.

Mom, Jill, and Jim waving from the top.

Here's a local that we met at the lighthouse.

And here is our view of Jill, Mom, Jim, and the stroller (with Elliott in it) from the top, zoomed in. Elliott wasn't allowed up since he can't walk, and he wasn't allowed to be carried, either.
Fun time, just very hot.

AND THIS CONCLUDES OUR TRIP TO FLORIDA!!!

Disney - Friday and Saturday

2008-07-26T15:21:00.003-05:00

This posting will be brief due to Elliott's crying--he is not consoled most of the time, but likes the cold, partially frozen washcloth in his mouth and being held. Sounds like teething, so if there aren't any more posts for a while, you understand why.

We all rode Spaceship: Earth (the big Epcot landmark that looks like a big silver golf ball) and here are our pictures from that.

Jillian answered the questionaire for their car, and guess who answered for my car? ;)
Based on your answers, they come up with a picture of your future. Jillian wanted to live in the city, and I said the country, thus the "tree house".

Jillian's Big Surprise: A Trip to the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique

The BBB is where young ladies (and we discovered a young man, as well) can go and become "princessified" (or princified, I suppose). There are three hair styles to choose from, and the option of getting an entire outfit (which we opted not due to the very high cost).
Since Jillian doesn't really *need* anything, we decided to give her this experience as part of her birthday gift from us. The rest is still yet to be determined...so much to do, so little time!!
Anyway, above is her "before" picture.

Jillian's fairy-godmother-in-training preps her hair.
I couldn't get many in between shots due to her other f-g-i-t's tending to her nails and glitter make up.

Hair spray shield.

Beauty spot.

Mickey Mouse is sitting on the back of her head.

Final princess close-up.

Princess Jillian, complete with sash.

Here's an example of what we *could* have done, if we were rich...

Me and the princesses, Jillian and Cinderella.

Mom, me and Princess Jillian and Princess Aurora.

Two princes at Rainforest Cafe after the big makeover.

Back to my crying prince!

Magic Kingdom

2008-07-24T22:55:00.004-05:00

I'm exhausted from my busy day, but perhaps it suits well to blog about an exhausting day at Disney World.

So we made it to the fairytale land of America, and it was so nice and humid! Jillian enjoyed the tram and monorail rides.

Jillian sets foot in the Magic Kingdom for the first time!

Elliott rides in with us. I look kinda dorky with the hat on that way, but it was better than cookin' in the sun.

Yay! Cinderella's castle! It's official!

"It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a..."

The rides in Fantasyland were often tame enough for Elliott to ride along with us. Yay! Family fun!

We met our first princess, Belle, in Liberty Square. She called me a princess, too! Then I had warm fuzzies. Now I know why Jillian gets such a thrill from all this!

We waited in the heat of the day for almost an hour for about 30 seconds on Dumbo, and Jillian hasn't even seen that movie! Ok, it was for me...I went on as a child once but didn't have a riding partner. Not anymore! Whee!!

Jillian and Brooks are in there somewhere on Cinderella's Golden Carousel (towards the middle). I would have gotten closer if I could have.

Jillian and Brooks got to meet Ariel and waited in line for about 45 minutes in the heat to do so! At least we got some cute pictures! Elliott and I went to the nice air-conditioned baby care center and he got his tank filled up.

Yeah, we went hom and crashed after that. Jillian stayed a little longer with my parents, but not much longer. We were all tuckered out--even Elliott! We eventually enjoyed the pool that evening, though. Very nice!! Later we ventured back out to Tomorrowland. It was still quite humid, but no sun and thinned crowds.

We didn't go to the parks on Wednesday or Friday (you'll see Friday's post in the near future). On Thursday, we enjoyed the waterpark, Blizzard Beach, until the afternoon rain storm, then made it to Epcot for some dinner in Great Britain with my folks, again with rain. Later, we had time to go back to Magic Kingdom and visit Adventureland and Frontierland. We got to ride so many rides in about 2 hours that we didn't need to go back there! It was great, and a lot of fun. We even got to see the light parade and wave to Cinderella and a few other familiar characters. Needless to say, another very full day.

I'm a Sponsor!

2008-07-23T16:29:00.004-05:00

Monday, Stephanie (Hopperton) Perry and her two lovely children, Nathan and Brianna Isabel, came to visit. Brianna is two months old now! Stephanie asked me to be her sponsor at her christening, which won't be for a couple months due to scheduling at the church. Anyway, I'm very honored that she asked me and I'm looking forward to it! Here are some cute pics from their visit.

The Perry's (Bob didn't visit)

Brianna Isabel at 2 months

Jillian and Nathan being very silly

Steph, Brianna, Nathan, Jill, and me (Elliott had JUST gone down for a much needed nap prior to this picture being taken)

On Being Home

2008-07-23T15:54:00.002-05:00

It has been wonderful being home for the past week and a half. I feel like I have gotten caught up on a lot of things, including housework. I haven't been checking email often, but I did today. Instead, I have gone to Jazzercise and helped transport Jillian to summer school, where she is learning the beginnings of multiplication. The concept of how it works is still new, but she knows 2x2 and 2x3 and 3x3, as well as the x1's and x0's--her Daddy taught her those, probably in our long car rides recently.

Brooks had a trial today that was rather silly because the obvious could not be proved...bureacracy strikes again! Oh well--it's his first loss for the year, and it's almost August. He finished the deck last night, but it's still "drying" and avoiding foot traffic. He scheduled an appt. to have it inspected, so that's the last step I guess. We'll see how it all goes from here! As for me, I continue to enjoy my iPod that Brooks gave me, as does he. :) I am trying to finish importing all of my CD's onto iTunes, which isn't so bad because I can do other chores while I wait. :) I plan to post another "back-blog" from vacation here soon. I continue to ask Brooks to contribute, but I am yet to be successful.

Elliott is playing with his activity mat/gym thing with the animals hanging from it--the is the first time he has really been actively participating with reaching and grabbing and swatting. I'm so glad he is reaching another milestone! Yay! Elliott seeks a lot of attention, and I often want to drop everything and give it to him to stop his crying, but I know it's important to allow him independent time to learn these types of important skills as well. He is quite spoiled from being held just about any time he wants to be. Even in his most crabby times, he still seems to enjoy some good face-to-face play. And just like any child, he *freezes* in front of a television.

We look forward to a visit from Mama and Dad Locke on Friday evening, and tonight we will take Jillian mini-golfing with 129. Hopefully, tomorrow Bethi and I will be getting Noodles together and catching up after more than a month apart! I'm looking forward to it!

Home at last

2008-07-18T00:40:00.002-05:00

So, things didn't work out to post again, and we are busy working at home on getting the house cleaned and putting the finishing touches on the patio. Jillian has summer school this week and next, so she is keeping busy, too. I'm still working on Brooks to post, but I am very thankful that he did some work in the office room upstairs that I have been asking him to do for a very long time. :) Elliott is sleeping extremely well now that we are home. Days are unpredictable (seems like several short naps instead of a couple long ones) but nights are AWESOME!
Dr. Jao measured him and he is in the 40-45th percentile for height and 50th for weight at 15 lbs. 7 oz. at 5 months. I still haven't taken him for his 3 month photos....perhaps the 6 month photos will happen? Oh well. At least I'm still sane.
Tomorrow night, we are going to JP and Hamille's for dinner and going to go see Batman: Dark Knight after watching Batman Begins with my mom. Good movie, even if you are not a comic fan. I love spending time with them, and I'm eager to take as many opportunities as I can since I anticipate that they will relocate in the future to further themselves professionally...like Providence, RI. That reminds me that I need to contact Bethi to hang with her! She is so wonderful and fun and I have missed her! Hopefully I won't forget tomorrow (again) in my busyness. Well, off to bed! I have to get Jill to class tomorrow!

Ooh, another post!

2008-07-08T23:04:00.003-05:00

Don't Cry! I bring you good news!

I just found out that the Blairs have wireless internet, so I will post something new after a good night's sleep. Yay!

I'm sure we will have a few things to share. This one may disappear when we update. For now, Brooks is enjoying my iPod. :) I'll try to get him to contribute, but you can tell how well my efforts have worked in the past.

Two more days, two more states! Four more coming up!

2008-07-08T10:42:00.006-05:00

Today we make our way to Maryland, so we have another long drive ahead. My new iPod, that Linda helped me get set up right before we left, has been quite helpful in making this trip more managable for me. :) Thank you Brooks and Linda! This post documents our travels on Sunday night through Tuesday morning. Brief, but plenty of pictures!

Stoughton, Massachusetts - Mariya and Alexander Kireyev (better known as Masha and Sasha)
Brooks pointed out today that this is only the 3rd time we have seen Masha (and I met Sasha, Alex, for the first time on Sunday night!) but it seems like we have known each other for years. :) Masha and Sasha are Russian immigrants who moved to Toledo originally, where Sasha's family was. They attended Emmaunel Baptist Church, where the Lockes attend, and that's how they met. While Masha was finishing her Masters program at Bowling Green in Spanish (so she could teach in the US), she lived with the Lockes, and we visited twice while she was there. I found out that we share 3 languages--English, Spanish, and music! Masha plays recorder, for fun. We had a little recital before she left Ohio to rejoin her hubby in Boston, where he has been working for a pharmacutical company.

Don't you think Masha and I could be related, sisters even?

Sasha had to go to work, but Masha showed us a wonderful morning and an amazing crepes breakfast--my first! Another way to enjoy fresh fruit!

Jillian and Masha in her very cool kitchen!

Elliott had a great time on the floor, especially on his tummy, after two days of driving to get to Stoughton, south of Boston.

Boston, MA, Back Bay area - Ben Staffin and Jenny Steele

For those who may not know so well, Ben is one of my best buds from high school, and Jenny is his longtime girlfriend. I met her the first time at our senior prom (I would have been his date had it not been for my loser boyfriend at the time, but I'm glad to know Jenny--she's been a great match for Ben :) I think the last time we saw them was at our wedding, at which time they both lived in California (closer to SF). They moved to Mass. last summer/fall and bought their current condo downtown Boston this spring to accomodate work, thus less commute.
It was so good to see them again after so long! Jenny is working on her PhD at Tufts in Vet stuff and Ben enjoys working for Google.

Ben and Jenny treated us to a very nice Italian dinner in the Italian district in Boston. Brooks had his usual, of course. :) I had cheese ravioli and Jillian...you guessed it, spaghetti!

The "Make Way for Ducklings" statues in the Gardens. Jillian is taking a ride on the mother duck. :)

We had a nice (but very HUMID!) time at the Boston Public Gardens with Ben, as well as on the "promanade" that runs down the middle of Beacon Street on the way from his place to the Gardens.

Brooks and Elliott were quite warm but lookin' cool. :)
Elliott barely slept all day, but crashed for the night quite nicely around 9:30pm.

Another Day, Another State: Rhode Island! The Ocean State

The views from our hotel room. It was quite a nice view to wake up to! The sailboats on the water were neat to watch.

I don't know the internet capabilities for the next couple days, but we will update when we can. We are rushing and busy all the time!
Love from Rhode Island

Road Trip, Day 1 - Erie, PA

2008-07-06T08:56:00.002-05:00

We arrived at a hotel near Erie, PA around 12:30am, and it turned out to be very nice in the room, although outside it looks pretty ghetto. We all slept well, including Elliott--Jillian is playing with him right now. Off to the free breakfast soon, then we get back on 90 to Stoughton, MA to visit our Russian friends, Masha and Alex, who we met through Brooks' parents last year. Masha stayed with the Lockes for the spring semester last year to finish her masters program at Bowling Green. Now she is back with her hubby near Boston, and we are planning to have dinner with them tonight and they are graciously hosting us tonight. Yay!!!
Hopefully, I will be able to blog regularly this trip, but who knows at this point. So check if you like, but don't get your hopes up too high. :)

Disney Day 1 - Animal Kingdom

2008-07-04T14:20:00.002-05:00

So, in order to beat the massive crowds at Magic Kingdom, we opted to try Animal Kingdom first. It was hot, humid, and uncomfortable, and we hadn't even gotten on the tram to take us to the park gate!

After Jill got her face painted (gift from Nana) to look like Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, wee slowly made it through different attractions, like the jungle walk, then got on the safari ride (see pictures below). Jillian, Brooks, and I got fast passes to the one water ride, very similar to the raft ride at Great America, and boy was it a nice heat relief! I got some AC in the Baby Care Center while nursing Elliott, though. We all got some AC watching a fantastic musical version of Finding Nemo, too. Well worth the wait!

We left a little early and crashed at the resort, then got some time in the pool--VERY NICE!!! I will have to get some pictures from my mom to post as well. :) Elliott even liked it after he got used to it.

Pre-princess...the face painter lady said that most AK face painters only know the faces offered at AK, like lions, butterflies, zebras, etc. However, she also works at Magic Kingdom some times, so she knows the princess faces, so Jillian got her request.

Princess Aurora for the day!

The safari was really neat. Overall, it was more like a zoo, so it wasn't as impressive, being Brookfield Zoo regulars, and now members, thanks to Dad. :) Still, it was neat to feel like we were on a safari :)

Madiera Beach, Florida

2008-06-29T16:32:00.005-05:00

Jillian's first time at a real beach on the ocean...yeah, it's the gulf side, but Brooks insists. It was a very nice day, well worth the day waiting for the rain and storms to clear. Our hotel/condo was just across the street from the beach. Very nice!

Grampa takes Jill out for her first wade in salt water.

Nana holds a sleeping Elliott.

Our first time at an ocean beach together. This is better than the dunes (except our friends aren't here to enjoy it with us--glad to have some family with us, though!!!)

Bathing beauty :)

Elliott gets his first salt water experience, too, while Jim gets some sunblock from Mom. :)

You can tell he LOVES it! ;)

Aww...my family at the beach! A dream come true!!!

Jillian gets more confident...

...and Elliott's not so sure. But Daddy's got him!

Isn't it beautiful water? The sand was great, too. Jillian found lots of shells, which came home.

The funniest part of the beach were the clams! I videoed them being unearthed by the waves, then immediately digging themselves back into the sand for refuge from the birds. That was a first for me. Overall, a great experience. I hope Brooks doesn't think I'm done with beaches yet. He seemed to like it a lot, too. :)

Jillian's New Outfit

2008-06-28T20:59:00.006-05:00

Here's a picture of Jillian and Linda with the blouse of the beautiful outfit handmade for her by Mama Locke.

The jacket, too...

A skirt! And a matching purse!!!

Coming downstairs, as if it were to the ball...

...with the perfect shoes to complete her gorgeous outfit! It's as if Nana knew everything about the outfit that Mama Locke was making and got her the perfect shoes in preparation. :) Thanks, Nana! THANKS, GRANDMA LOCKE!!! (From Jillian)

Grandma Locke gets a present from the grandkids, for Mother's Day. A little late, but in person!

Thanks, again, to Mama Locke and my Mom for everything! Happy Mother's Day (again)!!!!!

Almost finished!

2008-06-20T09:54:00.006-05:00

Beautiful Blue Hydrangeas! Who would have thought that my cruddy soil would keep my hydrangeas blue (instead of them turning pink)!

Elliott in the bouncy seat. He has been a very good baby, sleeping, eating, and playing well, even when he is not being held!

Extra pansies in my flower pots...two were homemade gifts from Jillian. I'm so glad they are finally going to good use again!

We are preparing to leave for Florida today, so this will be brief in words.

Jillian on the patio!

Jillian talking to Mac

Some thing we got at Sonny Acres that likes shade and makes a good ground cover AND has purple flowers. :)

Last night, Brooks had to miss "Little Shop of Horrors" starring Jessica Cross, my dear friend from Elmhurst, to finish the patio. He (and I) have had to miss several things this week in the rush to finish, but God has been so gracious to give us a whole week with nice, mild heat and no rain. Brooks still managed to sweat profusely, but he avoided sunburn everywhere except the side of his right calf, thanks to me. :)

Patio from the house

Patio!

Mac likes sniffing the outdoors since he can't get out there

Anyway, here are the pictures of the patio almost finished (just needs the filler sand between the pavers, as far as I know), along with Jillian, Mac, Elliott, all from just moments ago, and some of our plants from outside that are doing well. :) Thanks to Dad Locke for the beautiful blue hydrangeas!!!!

New hydrangea this year from Brooks--the other one that bloomed first was "bunnified". :(

Our hydrangea from last year--behind the newer one, but still thriving thus far!

Sherbet viola pansies out front--thank you, Brooks!

Jillian and Mac admiring the patio

Mac, wishing he could jump outside, but sitting contently by the screen for now. We are enjoying the weather that allows us to comfortably keep our back door open.

Patio Progress

2008-06-16T23:16:00.005-05:00

As I was working on the most recent post, Brooks was working diligently on the patio. Actually, he put the neighbor kids to work lifting pavers while he played in the sand. ;) (Or was it the other way around???) The neighbor kids, Semaje and Jameel aren't innocent, but they are regular kids who love to help out and do stuff with their hands! They helped plant our flowers out front, too. :)

Here are some pictures of the progress on the patio.

When Dad and Mama Locke left us a couple weeks ago, there was nothin' but limestone base out there. Now check it out! This is the view from the back door.

View from the bushes...7 pavers down, 65 more to go...plus all the sand, leveling the sand, cutting the trim stuff, installing the trim,...please pray that he finishes before we leave for Florida on Friday night!

View of what we still have left to do. I went out to help Brooks with sand (I think I helped...) to hopefully move things along a little faster after I watched him for a while (I had to learn what to do somehow!) Looking at and walking on the laid pavers is very encouraging. Now we just have to do what we did 9 more times.

Brooks looking hot from all the hard work, and with a fresh new haircut!

I bought tickets to see Little Shop of Horrors at the Wheaton Theatre on Thursday night, featuring another one of my bridesmaids, Jessica Cross. Linda Yeo, my maid of honor, is coming over to babysit so we can go. Yay!!! I will see about getting pictures of that posted. If not, I will defer to the website. :)

I don't know if it's legal to have a post without a picture of Elliott, so here are a couple recent shots I took on our bed. He is certainly more expressive here than previously!

Enough posts for one day, donchathink?

Another new baby

2008-06-16T22:33:00.004-05:00

Introducing Brianna Isabel Perry
born to Stephanie (Hopperton) and Bob Perry
on May 22, 2008.

I know that these pictures aren't new at this point, but hey, they're here now! That's why a previous post was called "Last things first". Brooks and I went to meet her and congratulate her parents (Stephanie is my childhood friend and was one of my bridesmaids) on Thursday before they went home. Elliott was there, too, but he was sleeping. Steph said she was hungry all the time, and she seemed to live up to that reputation. At least she was nursing well! Yay!

Here's little BIP with her proud papa, Bob.
I must say, I'm very happy for Steph. Her story isn't so different from mine, except hers turned out a little better without so many changes. Nathan was born January 11, 2004, and Bob proposed to Stephanie the following Christmas. They were married on September 3, 2006, and I got to be one of her bridesmaids and even sing for the wedding! :) Bob's a quality guy and I'm so glad she met him. :) She deserves someone really great like him!

The plan is to go visit them on either Wednesday or Thursday this week. I will try to remember the camera again, but this really is Brooks' department...until I get my own actual digital camera. I think that will help me get more pictures, since I won't be lugging around the camcorder. It's great, and we really like it and get a lot of use out of it, now I just want to be like my mom. :) Speaking of my mom, my Aunt Shirley and Uncle John are visiting from Missouri this week (and last), and I got some pictures of Elliott and my mom and Aunt Shirley on her camera. I will try to have her email those to me to post. Yay!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

2008-06-16T00:09:00.004-05:00

Two cuties in green :)

He's trying...

ELLIOTT SMILES!

Now that Elliott smiles at me often, it was so much easier to get this picture of him smiling!

Ode to Brooks:

While is this is not your first time celebrating Father's Day, it is your first time celebrating with a "mini-Brooks". It is so precious to see the strong resemblence between you and Elliott. :)

And this is not your first time celebrating with a child of yours, but now you are a father of 2, which is twice the fun, and twice the responsibility. It's no longer 2:1, it's 1:1 parents to kids.

Finally this is not your first Father's Day with minors, but it is your first being the father of an infant. The middle of the night wake ups, the burp cloth armor, and lots of diaper changes. Not just any diaper changes, but a huge dirty diaper on Father's Day, that YOU got to clean up. Sure, it wasn't the blow-out that I got on Mother's Day that included hosing him down in the sink in the church nursery because wipes were doing no good. But now you know what your parents went through with you.

Now, you have truly joined the ranks of true fatherhood. :)

Brooks, you are a wonderful and amazing father. You are dedicated, loving, patient, kind, and fun. You help Jillian with her homework after a long day of work. You make her lunch and sometimes make her dinner when I'm not able to. You have burped Elliott a lot, given baths, changed clothes, and changed many diapers, all with a smile on your face and in your voice. I can't imagine a better father to our children.

Brooks, you are an amazing husband to me. You encourage me, love me even when I'm not giddy, you are patient with me, you support me and lead me, set a good example for me, you are so loyal and take care of me. And when I turn off the game/computer and have your attention and speak slowly and loudly, you are a wonderful listener. :) You are my best friend! God's love is so evident in your love for me, and I am so blessed by you! I hope you had a wonderful father's day--you deserve it!

Love,

Susan

Elliott smiles as he giggles at me! :) So sweet!
There are my two favorite guys!!!!

Last things first - Elliott's first trip to Ohio

2008-06-15T23:37:00.005-05:00

We are home from a nice visit in Toledo with the Lockes (aka the in-laws, not us, silly!) This was Elliott's first time visiting Grandma and Grandpa Locke at their home in Ohio. That means he also added two new states to his list--Indiana and Ohio! That makes 4 in less than 4 months!

He got to try out Emmanuel Baptist Church's infant nursery, called Sleepers (as opposed to Creepers or Leapers, for crawlers and walkers/toddlers. I personally was impressed with their nursing room as well as their whole system. I got to wear a pager during the service and, sure enough, I was paged due to Elliott's unconsolable crying. I didn't tell them, but it was only because they changed his clothes (like I asked, since he was drenched from spit up earlier but sleeping when I dropped him off) and he does NOT like changing his clothes, or getting dressed. Undressing isn't so bad for some reason. Oh well. Maybe someday he will figure out that if he insists on maintaining his reputation as the Spit Up King, he will have to change his clothes more frequently! At least he has all sorts of cute outfits to wear...he is almost 4 months now and wears size 3-6 months. Anyway, he was talking up a storm (apparently, the storm occured back home where it took out power in the Wheaton area, including our church!) while we were in Toledo, much to the enjoyment of Mama Locke and Dad Locke.

Elliott is wearing an adorable outfit from Mama Locke with a froggie (by Taggies) on it, but he has been spitting up so much that the fuzzy froggy bib (by Carter's) covered up the other froggie. At least his Grandma got to see him wearing it!

Now that he is smiling and cooing and "talking" to us more now, I think he's starting to be more fun for all. Especially me, since I seem to be his sort of favorite...I'm not trying to boast at all! Sometimes I feel bad that my exclusive nursing of Elliott has taken away from his time with Brooks, but I'm seeing that this is not true. Nor do I think it is the root of his bias--I think it's because I'm his mommy and I just spend more time with him, period. I interact with him more, whereas Brooks is responsible for time-sensitive things, such as paying bills, so those things keep him from giving Elliott as much attention as I am able to. Sure, I do my share of house work with laundry and dishes and such, but I'm also not working, either.

I take that back...I go to DO for assessment training on June 16 (hey, that's only a few hours away now!) as well as more music curriculum meetings July 1-3...then web-based grade book training on August 5, and who knows when the other meetings will be. :( I mean, it's nice that I get paid for the time I spend in the summer, since it doesn't hurt after having my paychecks cut to reflect the unpaid part of my maternity leave, but I won't get it until my first fall paycheck.

Well, I'm thankful Mom is coming over to help tomorrow while I'm at District Office. Brooks is STILL not finished with the patio...the goal is to finish before we leave Friday night for Florida! We'll see--I'll try to take a photo or two to show his progress...or lack thereof as of yet. :)

Thanks to Mama Locke and Dad Locke for all their help getting it to where it is! (Mama Locke didn't dig, silly, she babysat Elliott while I was at work. :)

A little something...

2008-06-08T12:17:00.003-05:00

So we've been too busy to take photos or post anything, so here are a couple pictures that are cute of Elliott. We are still in Springfield for a wedding, waiting for Elliott to wake up from his nap, then I can feed him and we can go to a museum. Of course, we forgot the camera, so there won't be any pictures of this trip.

Elliott in a cute overalls outfit from the resale shop and the "L is for Lion" bib. (L is for Locke, too!)

Elliott checking out his mobile. It plays Mozart and goes around and up and down.

Here's a close up of the cutie. :)

Brooks has been working on the patio out back, but he needs some help finishing it. Hopefully Steve Hinchee can come over to help. I'm finally done with school, but it was a long two weeks, including all the time I spent getting my new text books organized and put away for the summer and packing up the old ones. Bleh. Jillian starts swimming lessons again tomorrow...maybe I can get pictures of that, if the weather allows for her to have lessons. We have thunderstorms in the forecast for the whole week as of right now. That's better than the extreme heat and humidity that they have down here in Springfield. At least they also have Hardee's. :)

Patience is a virtue

2008-05-24T22:04:00.002-05:00

We have all sorts of awesome new picture and other fun stories to post, however, we are blessed by the company of Brooks' parents (and Linda today, too!) So, somethings that you will have to patiently wait for include:

pictures of Brianna Isabel
pictures of Jillian in a very beautiful and special outfit :)
story about our fun day with Linda
Elliott, handsome as always
pictures with the Lockes
update on the Weckessers
?me with my new 'do?
Events yet to happen:
Warren family gathering pictures (Sunday)
graduation party for Glo (Sunday)
129 Bike and BBQ pictures (Monday)

So, as you can see, we are not lacking material, just time to post it all!

In other news, I return to work for the last 6 1/2 days of school (plus a half day with district-wide events, such as service recognition/retirement awards) on Tuesday, May 27th...I day I didn't realize would approach so quickly. I'm not afraid to be back in the classroom, just juggle work with my baby/nursing responsibilities. I will have to be very strict in my scheduling and very disciplined in my sleeping and waking. Please pray that I would be strong and disciplined to get everything done and still be on time for work!!! :) It would be really fun to take a few pics of me back at work with my students...we'll see if I can get that done, too! Since Brooks will be home more with fewer responsibilities this week, perhaps I will be able to convince him to publish a post for once. :) We'll see...

In the arms of Jesus

2008-05-22T00:51:00.002-05:00

I have had such an amazing response to my recent blog postings about Gabriel and Stephanie's baby, and I want to thank you all, especially Anne and Linda, whose responses really helped me to move in the direction I wanted to move in--forward!
Brooks and I had a nice visit with the Weckessers at CDH, which looks even nicer than I remembered from when I had Jillian. Gabriel has had a cold, which explains his weaker voice recently. He showed us pictures of the baby, whom they named Josiah Blaine, which means "God heals", and "first born", and Blaine was Gabriel's given name (he changed one of his middle names to his first name before he and Stephanie married about 3 years ago.) They had a small service with some other friends from church (they would have invited us if there was room!) in the hospital room where Stephanie delivered last night. Gabriel showed us Josiah's foot prints and other stats, such as his length and weight. Josiah's body was bright red, like blood, due to his extremely premature exit, but he still looked like a complete baby, and I could even see that he was starting to look like his parents. During our visit, I did mostly listening, but before we left, I told them there was so much I wanted to say, but I was afraid I would break down crying, but Gabriel suggested I try and gave me a tissue. :) I shared how I was grieving for them, knowing it must be so hard for them, but was glad to have been praying for them and that we wanted to help. I also told them that I had comfort knowing their trust in the Lord, and that Josiah is in the best place possible--in the arms of Jesus--beside his parents' arms. Gabriel is a wonderful husband to Stephanie, and it was so clear in the way he cared for her in the hospital. Thankfully, Stephanie also got the love and care of her mom as we were leaving. She flew in from France, and her dad will hopefully be following tomorrow. They seemed to appreciate our visit and company. We will be preparing and bringing dinner to them on Friday evening, so we get to show them move love before the week is out. :) Stephanie also explained some other reasons why they had a little more peace than they would have had otherwise based on the circumstances, and I was thinking the same things, so that was very comforting to me, too, knowing that they are truly thankful for the small improvements on this tragic scenario.
Of course they still need lots of prayer, so I appreciate those who are praying for them and hope you will continue as they adjust. Gabriel's parents are coming from Colorado, too, and I would imagine that any memorial service will wait until they are all around, if possible.

On a lighter note, Elliott joined me a women's bible study tonight and got all sorts of fun attention from various friends of mine. He also cooed and aahed up a storm in the swing to me as I was working on my cross stitch for him. It was just what this mama needed to hear. :)

Also, my life-long friend, Stephanie Hopperton Perry, gave birth to a little girl named Brianna Isabel Perry today at 3:39. We are planning to visit while Jillian is at school tomorrow since I doubt she will be allowed in. I will try to remember the camera to take pictures and post some.

Well, off to bed for me before I make any more crazy typos that I have to fix!

The Pokey Little Puppy

2008-05-20T18:51:00.004-05:00

Thank you, Ms. Diane!

Last week, when Brooks and I joined Diane for her birthday lunch at Culver's (their favorite), she brought gifts for Elliott--books! And not just any books. These books were special to Diane, so we are so blessed to have her share some of her childhood with our kids. :)

Her favorite was "The Pokey Little Puppy", which she tried reading to Elliott that day, but he was ready for a nap and thus could not be satisfied with anything but being held up (which is impossible when trying to hold a book to read to him!) However, I got to read it to him today while he was nursing, a challenge at times, but at least he had better audience etiquette. Jillian came in and saw me finish that adorable story, so she picked out another new book from Diane, "Scuffy the Tugboat". It was very sweet, as it always is when Jillian interacts (or at least attempts) with her little brother.

You can tell he is happier with her holding him than when he is in the crib. I can't say that they look like brother and sister by their facial features, but you can tell they love each other by looking at them. :) I'm also really impressed with this picture of Jillian because I think she looks a lot like me when I smile. :) And that's a real smile! Her teeth are growing in fairly well, although I wouldn't be surprised if braces are in her future based on genetics (but not from me!)

I feel so blessed to have two great children and such a loving husband. God is so good!

Update on friends: I spoke to our friends from church who are grieving the loss of their baby's life in utero this evening. Stephanie was giving oral medicine to induce labor, which her body accepted, especially after her body seemed to be starting the process a bit naturally. She said it was intense pain, but she was able to receive pain medication that is less invasive than an epidural due to the circumstances. She had originally been scheduled for a c-section in early September because of the risks from a surgery 5 years ago. Anyway, Gabriel sounded so sad and exhausted, and Stephanie said that she feels like she is emotionally and physically better than she was in the last 36-48 hours. They told me they were planning a small service this evening at the hospital, as well as a memorial service in the near future. I was surprised that the hospital kept the stillborn baby in the room with them after the delivery. I can't imagine the grief they must be experiencing, and I hope being able to "be" with their baby for a little while helped. Everytime I've looked at Elliott tonight, I have thought of them and how overwhelmingly grief-stricken they must be. When I look back at all of the complications that I have had since Elliott was born, it pales in comparison to this. I am so thankful that they trust in Jesus, because I don't know how else they could handle this. Baby Weckesser is with Jesus now, safe in His loving arms, and someday, Gabriel and Stephanie will get to meet this sweet little life in heaven.

As I finally give in the tears and I grieve for my friends, please continue to pray for them. I want to reach out to them, but I'm afraid I won't make it easier on the emotionally...I will burst into tears, I will want to know more about this baby (I don't know if it's a boy or a girl even!) and what they are thinking and feeling about this experience. Please pray that God would use me for good and that I would be sensitive to His leading.

Thank you.

Please Pray...

2008-05-20T00:37:00.003-05:00

Did you ever feel bad for being blessed because one of your friends was not so blessed in the same way?

I am starting to feel that for a dear friend from church, who just let us know that they lost their baby. This sweet lady was showing and made it to 21 weeks...suspicions rose at the 20 week ultrasound due to the small size. The follow up sonogram today showed no heart beat and fluid in the brain and lungs; there were other tests done, including an amniocentisis, and at this point they suspect a chromosomal problem. She will be induced this week...

I can't imagine such a hardship without feeling hopeless...I can't fathom going through the immense pains of labor, knowing that your first childbirth experience will be a stillbirth...They have reasons to be hopeful, first of all Jesus, as well as a womb capable of pregnancy again (it's not like a miscarriage due to problems with mom's body). Still, I would probably be crying endlessly for days, and Brooks would just hold me and not know what to do to help me, while being just as sad...

Then I think of the extended conversations we had Sunday about babies and stuff for them and dad's roles, and how we have a little baby, and they have to wait that much longer to experience the joy we have, but going through a lot of grieving first...I could use some prayer, just so I don't say or do something that would make it worse, or that I won't make it worse by just being...there are a lot of hard things in the world, and this is one of the hardest, if you ask me. :(

God is faithful, sovreign, and holy, and will comfort them, I know, but they still need our prayers. Would you please join us?

Elliott's Dance

2008-05-16T09:19:00.004-05:00

Elliott is wearing a cute outfit from Grandma Locke! He was laying on the floor, as cute as can be, when I pulled the camera out. Now, we have still picture mode on the video camera, which is what we use, so it's not a little tiny pocket camera like others out there. Elliott likes to stare at the video camera, which is why it took so long to get a more expressive shot of him. I also had to tweak the flash and stuff. Here they are in the order that I took them.

Elliott is wearing wrist rattles with a cow and pig on them with bands that have a fun crinkle sound.

I put them on him when he was younger, to motivate him to wiggle more. Didn't work.

Now he's older and does it anyway, so they actually work!

Isn't it amazing how the camera makes his hair look more firey red than it looks in person?

You can see the top of mr. cow in this one, but Elliott still doesn't look that happy.

Elliott dancing his interpretive dance. You can even see the cute little bootie rattles he got. These have a sheep and a cow. This one turned out well--yay!

Surprise! What a happy boy! You can see mr. pig now, too.

Isn't he sweet?

Well, I hear Elliott crying upstairs, ready to eat again I guess. And Brooks wonders why I haven't updated the blog more...silly Brooks! At least Elliott slept through the night last night! And I wasn't in pain when I woke up--bonus! Firm, but not in pain. Mama is happy! Praise God!

From Mom's Camera

2008-05-15T20:24:00.005-05:00

My mom had all sorts of cool pics from when Elliott was "fresh from the oven", so I thought I would include some of these somewhere, too. There's even some from before he was born. Enjoy!
P.S. If you are wondering what's with all the pictures and posts all of a sudden, Brooks was verbalizing his dissatisfaction with the lack of posts in recent weeks. I was extremely sick (again) during that time, and he hasn't posted anything since February, so look who's talkin' buddy! ;)

Flowers from Aunt Shirley and Uncle John. They were supposed to be for my baby shower on the 17th (thus the Valentine's theme here) but I was in the hospital then. So I got to enjoy them in my hospital room--Thanks, Aunt Shirley and Uncle John!

Me hugging my new baby boy
I was soooo glad to hold him finally, and I didn't even have to wait as long as some moms!

Visitors! Aunt Gail, Lauren, (Jillian) and Katie look in on Elliott in the nursery under the bilirubin lights.

Me kissing my sweet new baby. Brooks was too busy calling everyone with the news to take any pictures like this, so we didn't have any until now. THANKS, MOM!!! If you didn't get a call, it's probably because I told him to stop calling the whole world and enjoy this tiny baby while he's still tiny! That, and I was done hearing, "No, we haven't decided on a name yet..."

Elliott's arms released from the burrito hold. THIS is why his face was all red and scratched up when he was a newborn--we couldn't keep his hands (with sharp nails) away from his face!

Jillian visiting me in the hospital while I was still pregnant.
Yes, I'm picking my lip--what else is new?

Eating my first meal post labor--hawaiian pizza from Taylor Street Pizza!
Yes, I know it's blurry--I'm glad! Anyone who has ever given birth probably wasn't looking their best right afterward. I'm still not sure that I want to post any pictures that we have from the birth!

Jillian checking out her new brother. I wonder what she was thinking...

Elliott's footprint on Brooks's hand - Brooks's cool new tattoo.
Notice Elliott in his little bassinet in the upper right corner.
Mom did a great job with this one!!!

Brooks is a NEW DAD! Like his hat I got him for Valentine's Day? He hasn't worn it since then, so I'm a little insulted, but I'll get over it. If you see him, ask him about it. ;)

Elmhurst Baby Shower Pictures

2008-05-15T17:17:00.005-05:00

My mom recently sent these pictures, and others, to me, so I thought I'd post some.

When I transferred to Elmhurst College, I didn't know anyone and I was not in a situation to meet people and make friends easily as a commuter working multiple jobs and caring for a small child. However, I was able to get involved in an organization of women musicians, formerly known as E.C. Sisterhood of Musicians, now a chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota, Internation women's music fraternity. Yes, fraternity, because there weren't any sororities at the time, and we do have men members (professional musicians and composers, for example, as honorary members, not guys who joined a girl's club in college).

Anyway, I found a whole bunch of great friends there, especially my "big sis", Karie (Mather) Friedman. She really went out of her way to love on me and make me feel special and stuff. I could say all sorts of nice things about all these ladies here, but I will keep it brief. Karie, and Stephanie (Anderson) Abudayeh hosted a baby shower for me since they didn't know me in my pre-Jillian years. It meant so much that they did that!!! It was so special and sweet, and boy, they know how to have fun!

(Left to right) Karie, Me & Jill, Stephanie, Jessica,

Sarah, Julie, and Beth. Margaret came a little later.

Here's my mom, Bonnie, playing Bottle Bowling. There are empty baby bottles as pins and we rolled a small ball across the floor, trying to knock over as many as we could. I didn't do that great, but Mom and Julie did very well! That's Margaret leaning over the counter on the right. :)

Jillian helped me open gifts. This was an adorable little basket/bucket from Julie Kania. She was our first president of the Kappa Omega chapter of SAI. Lisa Furst was in charge before it all came together. She was a great president and a lot of fun!

Stephanie and Karie gave me a diaper cake, decorated with all sorts of fun stuff, like washcloths and rattles and a bib and a blanket on top. :)

Stephanie (left) was always very friendly and was in most of my music ed. classes with me, including choir. This Swedish cutie not only helped me in classes and choir but also gave us some great help getting our honeymoon to Scandinavia planned, especially the part in Sweden, since she speaks Swedish. Her husband, Elias, is from Israel, so that's where she gets her cool new last name.

Margaret Brumann, to my right in the picture, has been my buddy on many adventures, including Jamaica, IMEA, and choir tours. She's always doing something amusing. :) Marge is from Chicago and has spent some time subbing in CPS and has some CRAZY stories from the trenches!!!!

Karie, next to Marge, as I said, was a great friend and "big sis". We were Sop. 2's together in concert choir. Her husband, Scott, and I took a J-term class together (Civil War Lit.) before I did my student teaching. That was back before either one of us was engaged. She, Stephanie, and I have done quite a few interesting things together, and they "encouraged" me to go through with my first date with Brooks. ;) Thanks!

Sarah (Nielsen) Galarza was another Christian choir friend and fellow music ed. major. When she and Karie were roommates, I got to bunk with them a few times on campus. She's a great singer and has worked at Great America in the shows. Now she teaches part time in Bensenville. Sarah was sweet enough to let me tag along with her and Jess to IMEA this year so I wouldn't have to drive when I decided to go later that usual due to my pregnancy. Rob is her hubby and Lily is her adorable little girl.

I mentioned Julie earlier, but she was also a Sop. 2 with Karie and Jess and me. She was a music business major and works downtown near where her boyfriend, Tim, works. (That's how they met :)

Jessica Cross was one of my bridesmaids. This girl became a "Jesus Freak" (and that's a compliment, mind you!!!) in college. We sat next to each other in choir as Sop. II's, were in Chamber Singers together, and had a blast. She's cute and trendy and honest and very talented! Jessica really encouraged me in my walk with Christ while at Elmhurst, helped me survive student teaching (my middle school placement at Bryan MS in Elmhurst, especially choir)! She is now doing what I was doing, except getting paid to do it, at Bryan. She's almost done with her first year! Yay!

I don't know how Beth got away without a picture with me, but she's really sweet and teaches middle schoolers in Des Plaines. Beth majored in Special Ed. so she provides support to students whose IEP's call for it. She just got engaged to her boyfriend of 6 years! Yay! So happy for Beth!!!

Hope you enjoyed this fun little stroll back to my pregnancy days and Elmhurst years. :)

"Three of a Kind"

2008-05-14T11:30:00.005-05:00

"One, two, three,
You, you, and me,
Standing in a line.
1, 2, 3, happy to be
just three,
just three of a kind!"

Yes, I have this song stuck in my head often now that Jillian has been singing her program songs at home, now that it's finished. :) It was an adorable program, and as you can see, Jillian's face really lights up the crowd!
She's the one with the cute pink bow on her head. I recently got that from a local second-hand children's shop that is AWESOME, called Good Cents. I even found a couple cute outfits for Elliott, but I haven't gotten any pictures of him in them yet since they are still so new. The black shirt Jillian is wearing is from there, too. She looks so grown up in it!
The story is about all those famous sets of three: three blind mice, little pigs, caballeros, men in a tub, little maids from school, billy goats gruff, wise men, and of course, the three bears. Baby bear goes missing and everyone is looking for her, including, yes, the Three Musketeers and the Search and Rescue Team! Still, no Baby Bear. Finally, they listen very carefully and hear something and find her in a tree stump. Very cute!
Anyway, the pictures that look like dancing with a flashlight are exactly that--the Search and Rescue Team Flashlight Dance. :) Jillian, again, seems to really get into it. It's too bad she didn't do this in ballet!

Look high, look low,

look anywhere that a bear might go...

Flashlight dance, starring Jillian!

Keep on,

keep on,

keep on...

searchin' for Baby Bear...

Some of Jillian's friends are by her, Sarah is far left, to her right is Rebecca R., then Lindsay. Mrs. Gouskos is in the lower right corner of this picture.

Listen, everybody listen...

1, 2, 3, happy to be just 3, just 3 of a kind!

I'll put up pictures of Elliott soon--I'm still trying to work on getting some cute videos of him on here, but it doesn't help that Brooks's computer is having trouble...ever since he installed the new "printer/fax/photo printer/copier" it's been acting up. It was slow and pokey before, but now it's just crazy! So, until next time...

Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on searchin' for Baby Bear...!

New Tricks!

2008-04-22T11:49:00.004-05:00

Elliott learned a new trick--rolling over! Now, he is only able to roll over from his tummy to his back, but this is typical of 2 month olds. This means that Elliott is not so far behind his full-term peers...somewhere out there. :) While he seems to act like a preemie in some ways (like nursing) he seems to act like a full term baby in other things.
Elliott also started smiling recently, and it's so sweet to see! I don't have any pictures of his social smiles yet, (smiles from "just gas" are different). However, the blogger site is experiencing technical difficulties and I'm not able to upload any pictures--sorry!
Today is Brooks and my anniversary. We are celebrating by inviting a plumber to come fix our recently leaky toliet in the upstairs bathroom. Sounds like fun, huh? I just got the call that they will be here in about 45 minutes. We also got a little surprise this morning when Brooks's alarm didn't go off...or at least neither of us heard it...so he slept in, so we got to spend a little more time together, which was really nice. I also managed to have some kind of neck spasm, so I got into the chiropractor this morning, and thankfully he was here to take care of Elliott for me! I need to call and get back into the midwifery for another small concern that I won't disclose. But I would appreciate your prayers that there isn't another complication. It sounds small but necessary to take care of it is what we think it is.
Time to get Elliott down for a nap! Another cool trick he does sometimes. :)

Trip to Pennsylvania - Grandpa Charles Locke Goes Home

2008-04-18T22:29:00.004-05:00

During Jillian's spring break, we had the honor and priviledge of a week long visit by Grandma Locke, known to me and my circle of friends as Mama Locke. :) While she stayed with relatives, the (Bruce and Judy) Duncans, she came to our house everyday and had long visits with Jillian and Elliott, and made delicious meals.

We are so grateful and thankful for Mama Locke's visit and all the yummy favorites she made for dinner. Our dinners together allowed us to share our highs and lows of the day (sometimes, Elliott was both! ;) All in all, while we kept anticipating that Mama Locke would have to leave us early to return home, only to prepare to leave for Langhorne. (Grandpa "babysitting" and Elliott as papoose or joey and me as the kangaroo mommy)

On Friday, April 4th, Brooks came home from work and Mama Locke got "the call". Grandpa Locke finally went home to be with his Lord. After a few calls to Grandma Locke in PA, we determined that Dad Locke had time to come out to IL for Elliott's dedication, then he and Mama Locke were off to help prepare for the funeral services on Friday, the 11th.
It was a really nice service--all of the Lockes (besides Grandma) got involved. Dad Locke shared his memories, Brooks led prayer at the end, and Mama Locke and I provided music. I sang "In Christ Alone", a song that was actually a congregational hymn at our wedding, while Mama Locke played keyboard. It was beautiful, emotional, and I think it was a wonderful way to remember Grandpa Locke.

We had a very nice visit with Grandma Locke, and she simply adored Elliott!!! Hope you like the pictures of her with him. I also made sure that we got a picture of four generations of the Locke family. :) You don't see that every day! (Jillian stayed home so she wouldn't miss school and get behind.)

Elliott was great on the plane both ways, even though Southwest decided to become an airline that I choose to avoid--again. FYI--Southwest Airlines does NOT pre-board families traveling with infants anymore--they have to wait until all of the "A" boarding group (60 people) boards, then you get to drag all of your stuff to the back of the plane if you plan to sit with your family. So, if you have to fly with a small child, save yourself the hassle and DON'T FLY SOUTHWEST!!!

Here are a couple of really cute pictures to show you Jillian, the sweet big sister, and Elliott's beautiful big blue eyes up close and adorable. :) He's so sweet, and I love him very much, even though he's still working on how to sleep without someone holding him. He is getting better, but I expect this to be a longer-term project, especially getting him to sleep through the night. I recently got Elliott to space out his nursing schedule to every 2 1/2 to 3 hours instead of every 2 hours, which is very helpful. My friend, Jessica Sanders, introduced me to Babywise, a book to help parents teach their babies to eat and sleep in a way that allows mom some time to breathe. I'll have to post more about that another day. All I have to time to say now is that I wish I had read this sooner (all you expectant mommy friends, are you reading this???) even though I'm not new to parenting, and that I am looking forward to the day that Elliott starts sleeping through the night on top of him spacing out his feedings. I'm starting to feel more like myself again. :) YAY! Thank you, Jesus!!!

Please Post Comments!!!

2008-04-14T10:35:00.006-05:00

Please feel free to post comments on our blog! We welcome them! In fact, they inspire me to post more fun pictures! So if you want to see more, give us some feedback, even if it's just "aww, how cute". You can email us directly if you want to keep your comments less public.
Thanks!

Dedication Dinner

2008-04-14T10:18:00.005-05:00

Here are the pictures of Sunday dinner with all of Elliott's grandparents after his Dedication.

Elliott with Mom and Dad.

Elliott with big sister Jillian. Cute, huh?

The Family (minus the kids)

Papa Zoo and Grandma Judy with Elliott

The "Little Prince" with Grandma and Grandpa Locke
(Grandma got him the adorable outfit, too!)

Grampa Jim and Nana and the future fan of a football team other than the Cowboys.

Elliott with Aunt Gail and cousin Lauren - Katie had to work :(

Here's a cute picture of Elliott that was from way before his dedication. :)

Elliott is Dedicated to the Lord!

2008-04-14T09:18:00.010-05:00

On Sunday, April 6, 2008, Elliott Charles Locke was dedicated to the Lord. For those who are not familiar with the tradition of infant dedication, here is what we do and why.

We stand on the platform before the congregation with the other families with infants to be dedicated.

We take turns bringing our child to Pastor Todd Augustine (the pastor who married us almost 2 years ago!) who introduces the baby to the congregation and gives background on their name, why the name was chosen and what it means. Then he prays for them, and he usually prays something related to the meaning of their name.

Elliott - English form of Elijah; meaning "The LORD (Yahweh) is my God"

Charles - meaning "strong and manly"

Pastor Augustine commented that he certainly is manly, getting a chuckle from the congregation. :)

Then he prayed that he would grow up strong in the Word and that he would know the LORD as his God, coming to faith at an early age.

Pastor Todd then asked us if our intention was to commit our child to the Lord, raising him to encourage his faith and to teach him about the Bible and it's truths, with the intention that one day he would come forward as an "adult" and make a public profession of his faith and be baptized. He asks the congregation if they will help and support us as the church family.

As Evangelical Christians, we believe that it is our faith in and love for Jesus Christ that saves us, not our baptism. In the Bible, when someone came to faith in Jesus, they were baptized, out of obedience and as a public profession of their inward change and connection with Christ. Some traditions baptize their children as infants, then confirm their faith around 8th grade. We dedicate our children, our gifts from God, to God as we raise them in the truths of the Bible so that they will come to a saving faith by the grace of God and choose to follow Him, including baptism, when they are ready.

My Midwife

2008-04-13T21:58:00.002-05:00

This is Liz Garcia, the midwife that delivered Elliott and helped us to achieve the birth that we were hoping for, despite all the complications. She was so encouraging and professional and wonderful! She asked me if it was the experience I wanted, and I told her that it went as well as it could have, and I felt so empowered to have been able to endure my labor. She also said that Deb Lawrence, our doula, really was amazing! Hopefully I will be able to meet up with Deb soon so I can get a picture with her and post that.

I won't go into details, but my 6 week check up brought me good news and bad news. The good news was that I had the most comfortable exam I've ever had--practically painless!!! I highly recommend that if you haven't tried midwifery before, even for well-woman gynecology care, you really should!!! The bad news was that I wasn't back to where I need to be, so she extended my medical leave for two more weeks (I have one more week left at this point). It doesn't really affect my work (since I am not returning to work until the end of May) but some of my symptoms aren't comfortable. I guess it's a good thing! Now that I finally received my paperwork to extend my medical leave, I haven't had a chance to get back to the midwifery.

Fine Arts Night

2008-03-27T21:15:00.008-05:00

Tonight, Brooks and I attended the Roy DeShane School's Fine Arts Night, complete with chorus program and art works decorating the halls. I got to see my mentor music teacher's work with the chorus program, "The Nightengale". Brooks commented that it was "simple" and that it was still very nice, as if to suggest something to me for next year, in order to help me. :) I agreed. :)

Here are some pictures, at my mom's request, from the evening.

All About Jillian, by her friend, Jada, and Jillian in front of her story.

Jillian's version of Van Gough's sunflower painting and Jillian's Egyptian mummy

Jillian in front of her locker, and her Ecuadorian animal weaving.

And, of course, here's a picture of Elliott. (Top) He is relaxing on his awesome new blanket with his name on it, home made with love by our friend, Sarah Herr. (Bottom) Isn't he just so cute? Jillian said in her interview by Jada that when she found out she was having a baby brother she was shocked, and she likes having a baby brother. She also fabricated that she gets to go to bed whenever she wants, and that she sleeps in her mom and dad's bed sometimes so she feels safe, which isn't fabricated. :) Just shows how creative she is and that she does draw from real life. :)

Elliott, the Spit Up King

2008-03-25T10:44:00.004-05:00

Elliott and Nana have fun burping at Nana and Grampa's house on Easter. He likes to burp for Nana and Grampa, but not as much for Mommy. At least he is an equal-opportunity baby when it comes to spit up! :)

This picture of Elliott proves that Elliott does have a Mommy and that he's not Brooks's clone. :) He looks more like Mommy as a baby in this picture, and not so much like Daddy.

Elliott seems to think that spitting up as much as possible, as soon as possible, as often as possible, after nursing is the cool thing to do. The rest of the family disagrees, but that hasn't stopped Elliott! I talked to 2 different doctors (one of the midwives who does lactation consulting and a HomeFirst family practice doctor as well) about it. It seems that he could be gassy due to some of my food choices, and healthy ones at that, particularly my love for dairy. So I stopped eating cheese and have substituted my favorite 1% for Rice Dream (the soy milk brings back too many sad memories from my dairy allergy as a child) and we started to see less spit up. Then this morning, Elliott was feeling like less of a king and proved that, dairy or not, he is still the Spit Up King!!!

Baby's First Easter
Jesus Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!
And Elliott slept through it!

Brooks and I were very blessed on the occasion of the celebration of the Resurrection by Elliott letting us sleep from 5:45am to 8:15am! Of course he takes at least 30-40 minutes to nurse, with the burping and spitting up and cleaning up, so we didn't make the 9:30am service at church. We missed Hamille and John Paul. :( Fortunately, we did have time to give Elliott a bath and get him all spiffy-ed up in his adorable Easter outfit from Heidi and arrive early to the 11:00am service and got good seats, in the sanctuary, next to Linda. :) It was a wonderful sermon from Acts 2:22-24, identifying Jesus and what he did on Easter--being raised from the tomb, because death could not hold him back. Pastor Todd Wilson compared the tomb to the womb, that it's not the end of our lives as Christians, it's just the beginning, and how Christ suffered the pangs of death just like mommies experience the pangs of labor, and there is no stopping the birth! Death could not stop Christ! Of course I could relate very well. :) He commented that he heard Linda and me laughing at that part.
My Tangent
I certainly felt every bit of my labor pains, except for some relief thanks to my amazing birth team: Brooks, Deb the doula, and Liz the midwife. I couldn't have done it without them! I HIGHLY recommend midwifery if you would like a natural, epidural-free birth, and I also HIGHLY recommend having a doula. However, not all doulas are created equal--get Deb Lawrence! She is so awesome, and she loves the Lord, and she speaks Tagalog! :) Liz supports natural childbirth (and homebirth, too, although Midwest Midwifery is not able to do home births) and she was so encouraging and made me feel so good when I turned down the epidural! She also helped me not to tear during my delivery and put Elliott on my tummy as soon as he came out--she didn't even announce his sex, I got to do it, and quite joyously, too! :) I just wish I had gotten a picture with my amazing team! I'm going to have to do that!
Anyway...
Our church sings the Halleluia Chorus from the Messiah at the end of every Easter service, except the 6:30am sunrise service--it's different!!! So, here we are, sitting close to the front of the church, full orchestra on the platform, organ blaring, choir singing, congregation joining in, and Elliott slept through ALL of it! I guess we know who his parents are. :)

Here is the ADORABLE outfit that "Aunt Heidi" (aka "Dee") got and sent to Elliott to wear for Easter. It's got a cute fuzzy bunny on the front, sweet little bunny slipper footies on the pants, and who could resist that precious little bunny bum? Elliott liked it so much he spit up on it right after we put it on him--twice. I couldn't believe it! At least you can't tell since the color blends right in! She also sent a cute onesie that also suits Elliott very well, "Mommy and Daddy's ALARM CLOCK"! Just a note: Heidi is Brooks's cousin, and was one of my beautiful bridesmaids in our wedding. She may not technically be Elliott's aunt, but special friends/family members deserve special recognition and special names to go with it. :) Another example of this: My dear friend from high school, Ben, is referred to in our house by me, as if he were another brother of mine, as "Uncle Ben". Cute, huh?

Hope you enjoyed the new pictures! I will try to put up a few more this week, when my battery on my laptop isn't so low. :) For now, I am basking in the loving mercy and forgiveness of my Lord! Elliott is sleeping :)

Just a note: Elliott has received many packages in the mail lately, since Elliott's birth, and I just wanted to let you all know that, even though I have been busy, too busy to call or get your thank you note written so I can put it in the mail, we got it! Since this is easy and efficient for me, this is your "we got it!" notice if you didn't get on from us already. :) If I missed you, please let me know and I will correct it!

Thank you to: ~ The Claybrooks ~ Heidi Babson ~ Uncle John and Aunt Nancy Babson ~ Torrey and Anne Babson ~ Ben Staffin and Jenny Steele ~ Glenn and Sandy Sapa ~ Justin and Angela Ohmie ~ Mary Moose ~ Sandy Lauck ~ Aunt Shirley Forrer ~ Bob and Amy Wilson ~ Uncle Richard and Aunt Brenda Warren

New photos

2008-03-07T10:07:00.003-06:00

Some new photos for your enjoyment :)

This picture was taken last night while Elliott was having some awake time...he seems to be having more of that lately. If you have ever seen a baby picture of Brooks, doesn't this picture of Elliott look just like Brooks when he was a baby??!????!?!!!?!

Here is a picture of Elliott on his first full day at home. He got this "cute" nightgown from Anne and Torrey after we told them we were expecting. He's so cute in it!!! It really helps that it has the little sleeves that roll over and cover his hands.

Here's another one from last night--Brooks and Elliott bonding. :)

Aren't they just adorable together? Brooks is such a great Daddy!

Don't expect to see any of me anytime soon--unless it's my hands or arms holding Elliott--I hope you understand. Besides, it's much more fun to see other people with him! :)

Settling In

2008-03-06T22:35:00.003-06:00

From Mommy's Perspective

Elliott meets Grampa Jim, famous for his silliness and the "squeeze, squeeze, squeeze". :) Elliott is in for a lot of fun with Grampa Jim! Add Jillian to the mix and look out!!!! ;) Doesn't Elliott look so little all bundled up in Grampa's arms?

Life with a newborn does not follow a set schedule. Not that I expected it to, but I'm reminded how easily things can change, from eating more often, sleeping longer, harder to get to sleep, to sleeping shorter times. It seems as if Elliott is settling in to what is expected of him as a baby, though, which is eat (nursing is going much better, Praise God!), sleep (although he has recently started to resist this a little more), and use as many diapers as possible. :) Earlier this week he managed to use almost every diaper change as an opportunity to test his squirting radius and range. :D Brooks and I are getting better at avoiding this, though, and Elliott seems to be less traumatized by his diaper changes in general, at least when I do it.

Jillian is so helpful, too. She is such an amazing big sister! When Elliott cries, instead of commenting "He's crying a lot" or something like that, she comes in and tries to make it stop, like offering his binky or talking sweetly to him or pulling the duck that plays "Twinkle, Twinkle"--Jillian loved that when she was a baby, but Elliott doesn't seem as impressed. Her love for him amazes me--she has not exhibited any signs of jealousy or competition for my attention. However, I do go out of my way to encourage and praise her for her help and kindness, so she knows she is appreciated. Jillian loves holding Elliott, and is even strong enough to hold him while she is standing, and he looks comfortable.
Jillian's report card came home this week, and Brooks and I were pleasantly shocked to find that she is meeting the standards in all of her subjects! Yay!!! Jillian does receive additional support services (as well as modifications/accomodations in class) at school for math and reading, and that is what seems to be making the difference. although the teachers give us credit for supporting her at home as well. We are so glad that she is gaining confidence and we pray that she will continue to grow academically to keep up with what is expected of her at each grade level and that eventually she will not require as many (if any) mod/accom's to achieve that. Her teachers have warned us that the jump from 2nd to 3rd is more like a leap, so we would appreciate your prayers, with ours, for her so that we do not lose the ground we have worked so hard to gain, particularly in her confidence. Jillian is so sweet, and I would hate to see her down on herself again. She has worked so hard over the past 3 years!

I just heard Elliott make the cutest sound ever--the little sigh after he sneezes--it's adorable!!!!!
My goal is to get a video of that and post it, since I see a place to do that on here. :) Hopefully we will catch it--we just missed it tonight. We got some really cute pictures of Brooks holding Elliott tonight, although Elliott's expressions aren't quite what we were looking for to put on a birth announcement. Oh well!

What a couple of handsome guys!!!

Brooks is an amazing father! Of course I've seen him with Jillian, and I must say that I think she is becoming a "Daddy's girl". It's getting harder for me to see her as just his stepdaughter--they really seem like they've been together since she was born. It's wonderful to see...then I see him with Elliott! He cheerfully changes his diapers, even in the middle of the night, and is so ready to take care of me and keep me resting so I recover. I accidentally did too much the other day and boy, was I sore!!! But Brooks always gets things for me, making multiple trips downstairs, and all over the place for that matter, and with pleasure, as if it was enjoyable for him! What a wonderful husband I have! I thank the Lord every day for him!!!!

Well, I see that this has gotten long, but I hope it wasn't terribly boring. ;) Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Happy Two Weeks Old Birthday!

2008-03-04T23:57:00.005-06:00

Sorry for the delay in posting any updates this past week. As you can imagine we have been busy getting settled in at home. However, in celebration of Elliott's two weeks old birthday here are some new photos.

Spending some time with Nana

Meeting Grandma and Grandpa Locke

We are all doing well, if a little sleep-deprived. We've greatly appreciated our friends who have been bringing us dinners the past two weeks. Elliott has an appointment with the pediatrician tomorrow to make sure that he's back up to birth weight. Thanks to all of you who have posted comments. It's great hearing from you!

Home Sweet Home

2008-02-21T21:10:00.002-06:00

Here are some pictures of Elliott as he arrived home this evening.

Going Home

2008-02-21T17:20:00.002-06:00

After 12 days at ABMC, we are finally heading home with Elliott! The staff here have been great, but we are thankful to all be going home together today. Elliott is supposed to stay under the bilirubin lights until 6pm, then we can go.

I will be heading back to work next week, so we are thankful that Susan has a friend that is able to come over and help out while I'm gone. I'm sure Susan would love to have other visitors, but give us a call first as we hope to settle into more of a routine once we get home.

Thanks again for your prayers! We love getting comments, so feel free to post.