Spicy Magnolia

A Reintroduction

Hello? 

Anyone there? 

Let me reintroduce myself.  My name is Meg.  I started this blog a little over a year ago with gusto.  Then I gave birth.  To a little boy who is now six months old.  A little boy who is becoming more active by the day.  And I’m trying to keep up.  That, and I’m trying to gain stability from what feels like a nose-dive into a melancholy ditch…about the blog, about life, about nearly everything under the sun. 

So, hello, again.

Hopefully we won’t have too many of those reintroductions; I miss writing and I miss you guys…the four of you readers who are left!

This post was started nearly two weeks ago around Brennan’s six month birthday (July 16th).  Since then, we spent a week in San Antonio with my parents where we also celebrated my Daddy’s birthday, and the post went unfinished.  More about the week in S.A. later, but without further ado, let me also reintroduce to our 1/2 year old! 

• At your six-month checkup, the receptionists thought you were irresistible.  They held you and let you work with them behind the desk until we were called to see the doctor.  They wanted to take you home with them.  At 17 lb. 11 oz. (50th percentile) and 28.5 inches long (95th percentile), you are one lanky monkey!  But you have some sweet fat rolls on you that I never want you to outgrow.  I mean, those thighs are hefty chunks o’ cuteness!  You want to be at least as tall as your 6’5” Daddy!  At the rate you’re going, you might pass him up.

• You are a professional sitter-upper. 
• While you mastered rolling over from your tummy to your back around 5 months old, once you started sitting up, you will have nothing to do with rolling over.  It’s an enigma to us.  Fortunately, we have witnesses that you rolled; otherwise no one would believe us! It’s like you checked it off your ‘to-learn’ list and you ain’t lookin’ back. 
• You continue to be our jumper.  On everything.  On everyone.  Squeals accompany the jumps.
• You love to practice standing.  It’s a toss up between jumping and standing as to which one you love more.  You’ve started whining more when you’re getting your diaper changed and getting dressed; it’s like I’m wasting your play-time or somethin’. 
• In addition to standing, you love using anyone as your jungle gym, trying to climb all over us!  You love trying to pull up (I have to watch my shirt like crazy so you don’t expose too much of Mommy!), and you’re now actually taking real steps when we practice your walking.
• Your babble has become more formed and defined.  I wonder what your first word will be!  Our guess is that it will be “Molly”.  And if the amount of your babble is any indication of how much you’ll actually talk, then you are bound to be an extrovert, very much unlike your two introverted parents.
• After two weeks of eating rice cereal, you were ready to feast upon a more flavorful and exciting set of culinary food options.  I made you green peas first, and by every account of your facial expressions, you disliked it intensely (more so than the lemon you got a hold of at Chuy’s).  But you ended up getting used to it because you ate it all with less and less of a “I detest this” look.  I’ve since made you sweet potatoes (two thumbs up), carrots (two thumbs up), apples (one thumb up), and avocados (two thumbs down).  Pops thinks we just need to add salsa to your avocados and then you’ll like it.
• Two weekends ago, we got you into huge giggle fests by wildly exclaiming, “I’m gonna huff, I’m gonna puff, and I’m gonna blow your house down!”  It had all three of us in stitches.
• Sounds interest you a lot; you use your fingers to rub whatever you’re touching to see if it’ll make a sound and to see how it feels.  You’re going to be the kid that scratches your fingernails across the chalkboard to hear what it sounds like.
• You love banging to hear what sound objects are going to make.  Your most favorite thing to bang on is our piano of Gaga’s we recently received in the last few weeks!  You love playing it and also listening to it when we have it on the player piano roll! 

                                             

• You and Daddy have finished your second book in the Narnia Chronicles, The Horse and His Boy, and are onto your third.
• You are mesmerized by all of the people when we go out.  This helps you stay preoccupied when we go out to dinner which is awesome because Daddy and I can enjoy an evening out with you.
• You love playing with other kids (or watching them play).
• The past month we’ve had wonderful visits from Meems who has come up once a week to either spend the day with us or stay a few nights!  She will never forget our lunch at Mighty Fine Burgers when we discovered you weren’t feeling well and you rested your head on her arms.  It was priceless. 
• Daddy likes using you as his play toy:

(That Quaker Oats container has now been shredded into a million pieces thanks to Molly.)

• You can put your paci in your mouth on your own, even for nap time.
• The first thing you do when you meet someone is reach out to touch their face.  Those who wear glasses:  beware!
• You had your first haircut by Mommy!!  You were getting a mullet and had some shaggy hairs coming over your ears, and well, I couldn’t resist chopping that first bit of blond hair.  How dare I!?  Of course, the only one who noticed was Meems, who was getting ready to do it herself, hoping I wouldn’t notice.  <grin>
• What gets you really going when we do tummy time is if we put some sort electronic device in front of you, like the remote control or a cell phone.  That probably makes us foolish for what we know is to come, but it’s fun to see something that gets you creeping and moving more during tummy time.

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Happy (belated) six month birthday, baby boy!  You are the sunshine of my days!

Link Love

A few articles and sites you might be interested in perusing:

This is probably already old news among the blog world (even though it’s only been up and running for two days), but Pioneer Woman created a great new recipe website called Tasty Kitchen.  You can share recipes, search through them all (Pioneer Woman’s tantalizing recipes included), and even participate in live chat sessions with other members.  It’s pretty cool.  And from what I’ve experienced of Pioneer Woman, anything she puts her hands to is cool.  I don’t know how she does it all.  But she does.  And I am in awe.  She’s a special breed.  If you aren’t familiar with The Pioneer Woman, then you need to take a moment and read all ‘bout her here.  If she wants a protégé, I’ll volunteer.  Happily. 

This is a tremendously poignant post written by Melissa Moore Fitzpatrick.

I recently discovered Billy Coffey at What I Learned Today, whose writing I enjoy a lot.  His memoirs remind me of Antique Mommy’s writing style, which is how I aspire to write when I’m inspired by something…but I have a long way to go!  This post, entitled “Love Made Visible” has been my most favorite yet. 

Having been born and raised in the border-town El Paso, Texas, I found this article very intriguing.  If you’re interested in the effects of immigration, particularly as it pertains to safety among big cities, you should take a look.  Agree or disagree?

Finally, July 11th’s edition of The Economist caught my attention with a 10-page special report on Texas and an article entitled “America’s Future:  California v Texas”.  Any true Texan will automatically agree that by far, Texas is better than California; that’s just a given.  Just as any true Texan would say that Texas is better than any other state, for that matter.  Usually Texans don’t have much to back up such convictions other than our solid, prideful stance that, “That’s just the way it is.  You’re wrongly mistaken if you believe otherwise.”  That stance has worked.  Simply because it’s true. And we don’t need to prove our greatness.  But the featured article and special report in The Economist has gladly provided all you skeptics reasons for why 1) Texas is better than California and why 2) Texas is the strongest state in the Union at the moment.  It’s not all glamorous, mind you.  There are some significant failings issues that Texas needs to address soon.  However, this article presents a strong case as to why so many, including Californians, are bee lining it to our Lonestar State.  If you happen to be one of the newbies, Welcome!  As for the rest of ya’ll, Don’t Mess With Texas!

 

 

One Bite At A Time

In a mere three days, I will have a six month old boy on my hands.  Yes, he’s still a baby, and will always, forever be my baby.  But as I gazed into that sleeping child’s face today as I was holding him, there was something about him that looked more like a young boy than a baby <shed tear>.  Brennan has been sick the last few days but is much better now.  While I would never wish him to be sick, there is something sweet about how cuddly and needy he is for Mommy’s lovies, ‘cause I’m happy to provide whatever makes help him feel better, especially lovies!

This Friday we’ll get more instructions from our pediatrician about starting solid foods, but in the meantime, she had us start on rice cereal a week and a half ago.  The dude liked it!

He was a little unsure about it at first.

It didn’t take long to realize there was a key component missing to his first solid feeding:  a bib.

He seems to be more interested in his Daddy taking the pictures than his cereal… 

Unless he is offered the opportunity to grab the spoon to feed himself.  Then it becomes much more entertaining.  (Please ignore all those sun spots on my arm that drastically show in this photo…eeek!!!  Are those old lady arms or what!?)

That’s a mischievous look if I ever saw one. 

Brennan thinks his cereal is really tasty!  Either that or Daddy made a goofy face to get that big smile out of him.   

After watching my friend, Corrie, feed her precious Guy (10 months old) a bowl of carrots on Skype, somehow without getting it all over his face, it made me realize I have my work cut out for me.

But he doesn’t seem to mind it one bit.

 

Sharing 101

No longer standoffish and reserved toward the baby who rocked her world, Molly has a whole new attitude about Brennan, who is more interactive these days.  Or maybe she’s succumbed to her new reality and adapted.  Or maybe it’s because she’s simply scheming up ways to get his toys.  If we’re laughing at Brennan, she’ll come in the middle of the action to be a part of it.  If we’re giving Brennan a bath, she’s right there ready to lap up the bath water and get her fur all on the tub.  If I bring out Brennan’s ball, she’s ready to pounce on it.  Any new item I give Brennan to play with (such as a cleaned out container of Quaker Oats), she’s ready to sniff, chew, and demolish.  You’d never think this dog was going to be eight years old in August!  Her tongue is her most used resource to communicate her affection to Brennan, soaking his face with wet slobbers at random times throughout the day.  She gets him to giggle when she’s licking his toes.  How could something be so endearing and gross at the same time?  We can be in the middle of our morning walk, when all of a sudden she’ll lay down and roll on her back for her tummy to be scratched, just to make me keenly aware of her presence and need for attention.  That dog is not short a lick of love! 

As the firstborn human child of ours, little did Brennan realize he would quickly need to learn how to share with the real firstborn of our family, albeit a canine. 

He was quietly playing with his Quaker Oats container when Molly plopped down…

I was playing with this, Molly. I had it first.

Really, do you have to chew it, too?  You already have your big claw paw on there.

 

You’re not playing fair!

 

Give it back, pleeeaasseee!

 

For the love!

 

Fine, I’ll be the nice one and let you have it.

Am I kidding myself to think he’ll not struggle sharing because Molly would have already hammered the concept into this young chap’s soul?  Likely.  Highly likely (especially when I already see tidbits of what will eventually emerge into tantrums one dreadful day). 

However, if anyone needs to learn sharing at the moment, I think it’s the dog.

Just For Kicks

Brennan has some best buds.  And these ones aren’t furry. 

Last Thursday, I dropped Brennan off at my friend Jill’s place while I went to the doctor and ran some errands.  His two bestest buds, Harrison and Haddie, were beyond thrilled to have Brennan over for a visit…Jill was thrilled, too!  Harrison’s goal is to make Brennan laugh.  Haddie’s goal is to play Brennan’s momma.  You should see them in action when they’re trying to meet their goals at the same time.  It is a riot!  And priceless!  They love being Brennan’s big bro and sis, and Brennan gladly soaks up the attention. 

Jill filmed this video that puts me and Matt in stitches.  It captures perfectly what a morning of play time with “H squared” looks like.  Jill posted this video as well as some other funny ones on her blog here and here if you want some more laughs.  In the video, Harrison is playing with Brennan’s pacifier holder.

I Have a Story

Although it’s been eight years since I’ve had a real summer break, there is still something about the summertime that signals a slower pace of life that I find refreshing. Aside from the onslaught of record-breaking heat, I enjoy a more relaxed season of playtime.  I might add that it is also a time for a welcomed reprieve from the horrendous daily commute in Austin’s traffic with all of the college students away for the summer. 

However, summertime now ushers in a season of reflection and remembrance of the past three consecutive years of painful loss with the deaths of two grandmothers and my college roommate.  I admit, the commencement of this summer was not without the cautious wonder if this summer would hold another passing of a dear loved one. 

There is a song I heard recently by Steven Curtis Chapman called Angels Wish.  While driving to San Antonio back in May, I found myself listening to this song over and over again.  I kept hitting the rewind button; I’m sure I listened to it at least 20 times.  It captured my heart.  It surfaced so many thoughts and much emotion.  Take a brief moment to read the lyrics.  Or if you’d like, you can listen to the song (no fancy music video, just the music). 

Was God smiling when He spoke the word and made the world?
And did He cry about the flood?
What does God's voice sound like when He sings, when He's angry?
These are just a few things that the angels have on me

Well, I can't fly at least not yet
I've got no halo on my head
And I can't even start to picture heaven's beauty
But I've been shown the Savior's love
The Grace of God has raised me up
To show me things the angels long to look into
And I know things the Angels only wish they knew

I have seen the dark and desperate place where sin will take you
I've felt loneliness and shame
And I have watched the blinding light of grace
Come breaking through with a sweetness only tasted
By the forgiven and redeemed

And someday I'll sit down with my angel friends
Up in heaven
And they'll tell me about Creation
And I'll tell them a story of Grace

Well, I can't fly at least not yet
I've got no halo on my head
And I can't even start to picture heaven's beauty
But I've been shown a Savior's love
The Grace of God has raised me up
To show me things the angels long to look into
And I know things the Angels only wish they knew

There was something in the lyrics and the melody of this song that made me immediately think of Cita, Becca, and Gaga.  Reminiscent.  With a sense of sorrow thinking of their deaths.  Rejoicing that they are the forgiven and redeemed.  Imagining that they are sitting, maybe even together, in heaven with the angels.  Swept away in wonderment at what heaven’s beauty must be like.  Wondering what parts of their stories of grace the angels long for those three ladies to share with them.  Wishing they were still here.  Thankful they are in the Presence of their Savior.  Trying to grasp that they know God in the fullness of His glory.

And then I was keenly and humbly aware that I have a story.  A story that even the angels only wish they knew (1 Peter 1:10-12)!  How utterly mind boggling that is to me.  How a human being such as myself, who is so messed up, could be so loved to have been given the gift of grace and forgiveness through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in His death and resurrection that even the angels long to know such a wonder, is incredible!  While I might not be hangin’ with the angels yet flappin’ away my gums, permit me to provide a glimpse of just a few things they’ll hear one day:

Rescued from cycles of anger and hurting myself, yes.  Recipient of joy and abundant help to be a mommy when I was so scared and didn’t really want to be a mommy, yes.  Witness to His power and might in healing my parents’ marriage while growing up, yes.  Blessed with a husband who loves me deeply and helps me laugh, yes.  Helped in overcoming fear and anxiety of failing and an unhealthy perfectionism, yes.  Born to two parents who love me, who lay their lives down for me and are my dearest of friends, yes.  Thankful that He is my Defender and Protector when I’ve felt so vulnerable and hurt, yes.  Amazed that in times of confusion about ‘what’s next’, that He’s brought peace and led the way, yes.  Praising Him that He gives me purpose even in the daily tasks of laundry and cleaning toilets, yes.  Astounded that He has brought me through 5.5 months of pumping for Brennan, yes.  Given the beautiful gift of life-long friendships, yes.  Grateful for the ways He’s pursued me and remained faithful, even when I have turned away in anger and been faithless, yes.  Humbled that He has surrounded me with women who have invested so much in my life and instilled in me a passion for His Word, yes.  Received immeasurable amount of comfort when grieved to the core, yes. 

I have a story.  A story that I will gladly share with the angels while Cita enjoys a good book, Becca plays guitar, and Gaga dances. 

Lord, thank you for all of the “yes’s” of grace, You and You alone, have given to me.