Quite the difference, huh? I did not like it. At. ALL. I thought it would be fun, like bath time, but I was WRONG! Maybe it was the fact that I was
For now, I'll just stick to playing in the grass and not the water.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
First Swim
Quite the difference, huh? I did not like it. At. ALL. I thought it would be fun, like bath time, but I was WRONG! Maybe it was the fact that I was
Thursday, February 23, 2012
My New Best Friends
Hello All! Parker again. So, Remember when I met this guy? Well, I have been lucky enough to meet someone else equally as famous. Some might argue even more famous. I have met THE Mickey Mouse, as well as the lovely Minnie Mouse! That's right. You heard what I said. Mom made sure I was prepared before our meeting. She bought me my own set of Mickey ears, complete with my name.
I think I was more mesmerized by these two than the previous 2 celebrities I met (Santa and Mrs. Claus in case you forgot). It could be because I have never seen any mice bigger than me. Actually, I have never even seen mice in general. However, I like to think it's because they are so incredibly awesome.
It took me a minute to really warm up to them. I think I was in awe of their highly famous reputation. I actually had to touch their hands to make sure they were real. Once we established they did really exist, I was all about making some new friends.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
We Wish You a Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year (A Little Late)
Yes, I know. My New Year's Resolution of doing a better job at keeping up with this blog has not exactly held up. Is there any surprise? How many new year's resolutions actually hold up? We had a wonderful holiday season, especially getting to experience it with Parker for the first time. We kept Christmas this year low key. We didn't buy much for Parker, but we made sure to fill it with all of our family traditions. We started Christmas Eve by picking oranges at a local grove, something we do every year.
Every year we comment on how blessed we feel to live in a place where we have the opportunity to pick oranges, wearing summer clothes, on Christmas Eve. I know many people feel as though they miss the cold weather around the holidays, but that is not us. We thrive on the heat. We love living in a place that allows us to rarely deal with the cold that seems to cut right through your bones. Days like Christmas Eve and traditions like picking oranges just remind us once again that God placed in a location that is absolutely perfect for us.
After picking oranges, we celebrated our usually tradition of Swedish dinner with Rachel and Morfar on Christmas Eve . This year, Rachel hosted Swedish dinner at her apartment and it was delicious as always. This was Parker's first experience with opening presents. He seemed more interested in eating tearing the wrapping paper than the actual present.
Christmas morning at our house went the same way. Before having Christmas lunch, we opened presents, which pretty much went the same way - lots of paper eating.
We ended the holiday season spending New Year's Eve weekend at Disney. Morfar was kind enough to give us some of his DVC points and we were able to stay at the Boardwalk Villas. For those of you that aren't familiar with the Boardwalk, it is within walking distance to Epcot and MGM, which proved to be so beneficial. We didn't have to mess with a bus or our car. We could just walk and enjoy the outdoors. The weather was beautiful all weekend long and with the crowd levels being extremely intense we were able to take it easy, take strolls to Epcot, as well as MGM, and just enjoy the NYE festivities. We spent actual NYE at Epcot. We enjoyed a tasty meal at the San Angel Inn (Mexico) before watching the fireworks (both Epcot and MGM) from the bridge in between the Boardwalk and Beach Club resorts. Naturally, we were pretty exhausted New Year's Day, so we decided to take it pretty easy and walk around Animal Kingdom, which happened to be Parker's first visit to the park. Overall, I'd say our first holiday season with Parker couldn't have been better!
Every year we comment on how blessed we feel to live in a place where we have the opportunity to pick oranges, wearing summer clothes, on Christmas Eve. I know many people feel as though they miss the cold weather around the holidays, but that is not us. We thrive on the heat. We love living in a place that allows us to rarely deal with the cold that seems to cut right through your bones. Days like Christmas Eve and traditions like picking oranges just remind us once again that God placed in a location that is absolutely perfect for us.
Christmas morning at our house went the same way. Before having Christmas lunch, we opened presents, which pretty much went the same way - lots of paper eating.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
A Lesson in Faith
As many of you saw through Facebook or heard through the family grapevine, we had a scary choking incident with Parker in early December. Let me start off by saying, this whole parenting thing is a daily struggle of realizing I'm not in control and going against some of my deepest personality qualities and sometimes, faults. I don't like feeling out of control. I'm also a worrier. I come by it naturally - I come from a long family line of worriers. I worry about little things, like is Parker going to get too hot if we go out in the Florida heat, as well as big things, like is he still breathing while sleeping. I admit, I'm not proud of some of my worries, but I can't help it. I have to daily fight and pray against some of my rational, and irrational, fears.
This night in December was no different than any of the nights before. We had put Parker to bed, awake, like we always do in an effort to try to get him to self-soothe. He cried, like usual. However, after a while of crying, I noticed his cry took on a different tone - one with more panic. One that was just different somehow. I couldn't tell you how it was different - I just knew it was. When I checked on Parker, I found him attempting to cry. It almost sounded like what you picture a child whose throat was closing due to an allergic reaction to sound like. Immediately, I picked him up, and it grew worse. I immediately called Ryan upstairs and we immediately started acting. I couldn't tell you what we did or why we chose to act the way we did - instinct just took over. After what seemed like forever, we realized the attempt to clear his throat by hitting his back, was not working. When we saw his eyes start to close a bit, we immediately called 911 and continue to hit his back. It was one of the scariest moments of my life to date. Of course, by the time the emergency responders (2 police officers, 3 fire-fighter/EMTs - the ambulance was called off) arrived, he was breathing again. I felt like an over-paranoid first-time Mom, but they did a good job of assuring me I was not. Things turned out fine. The responders said he could have simply choked on his spit. When we followed up with our doctor, she said some babies have "holding-their-breath spells" where they will actually hold their breath when feeling stressed or upset (leave it to my child).
I know this was the first of many lessons I am going to have in faith as a parent. I don't control what happens in this world (thankfully). I don't even control what happens with my own little family and for me, an knowing control-freak, this is scariest thought of my life. However, thankfully, it doesn't have to be. I know that I have a God who is always looking out for us. That doesn't mean everything is always going to be perfect or that things will always go right. However, it does mean, that someone much greater, wiser, loving, etc than me, has it all planned out. It might not always be something I understand, but that's where faith comes in. Since having Parker, I have to choose faith every day. I have to have faith knowing that God will take care of us, sometimes I will understand His ways and sometimes I won't. However, I have to have faith that He is in control, that there is a reason for it, and it's for His glory. Becoming a parent has been one of the hardest moments in my life, for obvious reasons, but also one of the most rewarding. It has been an event that has taught me more in 6 months than some of my other life-long events and it continues to teach me things every day. It is a daily lesson in patience, love, trust, and many other things. However, more than those, it's a daily lesson in trust and faith that I have a God who has it all under control, will never leave me, and will watch out for me during the good, and bad, times.
This night in December was no different than any of the nights before. We had put Parker to bed, awake, like we always do in an effort to try to get him to self-soothe. He cried, like usual. However, after a while of crying, I noticed his cry took on a different tone - one with more panic. One that was just different somehow. I couldn't tell you how it was different - I just knew it was. When I checked on Parker, I found him attempting to cry. It almost sounded like what you picture a child whose throat was closing due to an allergic reaction to sound like. Immediately, I picked him up, and it grew worse. I immediately called Ryan upstairs and we immediately started acting. I couldn't tell you what we did or why we chose to act the way we did - instinct just took over. After what seemed like forever, we realized the attempt to clear his throat by hitting his back, was not working. When we saw his eyes start to close a bit, we immediately called 911 and continue to hit his back. It was one of the scariest moments of my life to date. Of course, by the time the emergency responders (2 police officers, 3 fire-fighter/EMTs - the ambulance was called off) arrived, he was breathing again. I felt like an over-paranoid first-time Mom, but they did a good job of assuring me I was not. Things turned out fine. The responders said he could have simply choked on his spit. When we followed up with our doctor, she said some babies have "holding-their-breath spells" where they will actually hold their breath when feeling stressed or upset (leave it to my child).
I know this was the first of many lessons I am going to have in faith as a parent. I don't control what happens in this world (thankfully). I don't even control what happens with my own little family and for me, an knowing control-freak, this is scariest thought of my life. However, thankfully, it doesn't have to be. I know that I have a God who is always looking out for us. That doesn't mean everything is always going to be perfect or that things will always go right. However, it does mean, that someone much greater, wiser, loving, etc than me, has it all planned out. It might not always be something I understand, but that's where faith comes in. Since having Parker, I have to choose faith every day. I have to have faith knowing that God will take care of us, sometimes I will understand His ways and sometimes I won't. However, I have to have faith that He is in control, that there is a reason for it, and it's for His glory. Becoming a parent has been one of the hardest moments in my life, for obvious reasons, but also one of the most rewarding. It has been an event that has taught me more in 6 months than some of my other life-long events and it continues to teach me things every day. It is a daily lesson in patience, love, trust, and many other things. However, more than those, it's a daily lesson in trust and faith that I have a God who has it all under control, will never leave me, and will watch out for me during the good, and bad, times.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
I. Met. SANTA!
Hello Everyone!
I don't have a lot to say for this post. I am very busy rolling around the living room floor, trying to break a tooth, and trying to crawl. Notice, I said TRYING on the last two items. I haven't had much luck so far and let's just say it makes me VERY frustrated! Luckily, Mom has been nice enough to avoid snapping pictures of me during these weak moments. I'll just say they involve a lot of whining, crying, and flapping my arms - not the prettiest of moments.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand. I was fortunate enough to meet one of the most famous men in the entire WORLD. That's right, not just Florida, but the WORLD! Who you might ask? Well, if you paid attention to the title of this post, you would already know. You got it - I met Mr. Santa Claus himself. I also met his lovely wife Mrs. Clause. By the way, anyone know what her first name is?
Now, you know how some babies are a bit terrified of this mysterious, only-seen-one-night-a-year man? Not me! I loved every minute of it. Now, it helped that our meeting was not a private one. In fact, there were tons of other strangers waiting for their turn to meet the jolly old man, and in the process, had all eyes on me. I couldn't possibly let them see fear, could I? Of course not! Instead, I gave them quite a show of smiles and giggles. What can I say? I know how to work a crowd.
I don't have a lot to say for this post. I am very busy rolling around the living room floor, trying to break a tooth, and trying to crawl. Notice, I said TRYING on the last two items. I haven't had much luck so far and let's just say it makes me VERY frustrated! Luckily, Mom has been nice enough to avoid snapping pictures of me during these weak moments. I'll just say they involve a lot of whining, crying, and flapping my arms - not the prettiest of moments.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand. I was fortunate enough to meet one of the most famous men in the entire WORLD. That's right, not just Florida, but the WORLD! Who you might ask? Well, if you paid attention to the title of this post, you would already know. You got it - I met Mr. Santa Claus himself. I also met his lovely wife Mrs. Clause. By the way, anyone know what her first name is?
Now, you know how some babies are a bit terrified of this mysterious, only-seen-one-night-a-year man? Not me! I loved every minute of it. Now, it helped that our meeting was not a private one. In fact, there were tons of other strangers waiting for their turn to meet the jolly old man, and in the process, had all eyes on me. I couldn't possibly let them see fear, could I? Of course not! Instead, I gave them quite a show of smiles and giggles. What can I say? I know how to work a crowd.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Grandma & Grandpa Visit
At the beginning of December, Ryan's parents - Grandma & Grandpa - came to visit us for a week. It was Christmas time at Walt Disney World, so we spent most of the time park and hotel hopping to show them the amazing festivities that take place around WDW this time of year. Christmas time at Walt Disney world has to be one of my favorite times of year. The decorations are absolutely breathtaking. If it doesn't put you in the Christmas spirit, I don't think anything will.
The biggest event during their visit, was when we took them to see the Candlelight Processional. During the holidays, Walt Disney World presents the Candlelight Processional at Epcot, which is a nightly event where a celebrity guest speaker reads the birth of Christ from the book of Matthew, matched to Christmas songs performed by a full orchestra and choir. Every time I see it, I get chills thinking about what amazing gift we have been given in the form of Jesus and the salvation He brought with Him. Parker was absolutely amazed by the brilliant lights and sounds of the processional. If you are ever here during Christmas time, I can't recommend it enough. It's a yearly tradition for our family.
During their visit, Parker also tried bananas for the first time. So far, bananas seem to be Parker's favorite. I must admit, we have been great about having Parker try different foods, but terrible at being consistent with how many times we give him a particular food. I guess you can say that's one of our resolution of sorts.
The trip was packed with so many wonderful events. As always, when anyone visits, the time goes by so fast and we enjoy every minute of our time together.
The biggest event during their visit, was when we took them to see the Candlelight Processional. During the holidays, Walt Disney World presents the Candlelight Processional at Epcot, which is a nightly event where a celebrity guest speaker reads the birth of Christ from the book of Matthew, matched to Christmas songs performed by a full orchestra and choir. Every time I see it, I get chills thinking about what amazing gift we have been given in the form of Jesus and the salvation He brought with Him. Parker was absolutely amazed by the brilliant lights and sounds of the processional. If you are ever here during Christmas time, I can't recommend it enough. It's a yearly tradition for our family.
During their visit, Parker also tried bananas for the first time. So far, bananas seem to be Parker's favorite. I must admit, we have been great about having Parker try different foods, but terrible at being consistent with how many times we give him a particular food. I guess you can say that's one of our resolution of sorts.
The trip was packed with so many wonderful events. As always, when anyone visits, the time goes by so fast and we enjoy every minute of our time together.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Recent Events
"Wow" is all I can say when I look at this blog and realize how far behind I am in updating the events that have been unfolding in the Smith household. I know it's been said many times before, but I had the best of intentions of keeping up with this blog. However, as with many other things, life gets in the way. Not that it's a bad thing - that means we are spending precious time together living life, not just writing about it. Still, I know that this blog provides a way for family and friends to see what is happening, but also an online record keeping of the things we are seeing and experiences - moments that I know I will easily forget as time passes, but wish I could hang on to forever.
In November, after we arrived home from Kentucky, Parker took his first trip to the beach. We took an afternoon and drove to Tarpon Springs to enjoy some of our favorite Greek food, but more importantly our favorite ice cream shop. Seriously, if you are ever in Hudson, Fl, you must check out Hudson Beach Ice Cream Parlor. The ice cream is all homemade and is delish! The shop is nothing special. In fact, if you were driving through, you would probably pass right by, but I promise you, it is the most amazing ice cream you will ever have. After the ice cream, we drove a little farther south to Indian Rocks Beach. The weather was a bit cloudy and dreary, making for some cool temperatures, but because of that, it provided us with a near empty beach. We were able to take our time and let Parker experience his first beach. From the time he was born, Parker has been observant. So much so, that after he was born, he almost immediately stopped crying and simply looked around the hospital room at the all the objects and people. This time was no different. He didn't show a lot of emotion, but simply had his typical raised-eyebrow, furrowed-brow look - wondering what everything was. He was able to feel the sand, as well as let the water rush over his tiny toes. The beach has always been a big part of my life. I can remember many family vacations spent on various beaches and I can't wait for Parker to experience, and more importantly remember, the memories we will make as a family.
Also, during the month of November, we were lucky enough to spend a day with one of my dearest and oldest friends, Elizabeth, her husband Andrew, and their precious boy Wilson, who is a little less than 10 months older than Parker. I know that Parker and Wilson are still too young to remember each other, much less their day spent at Disney together, but I so look forward to the day when they will be friends and get excited for their visits from each other. One of the most precious moments of the trip took place while we were watching the American Idol Experience and Parker and Wilson decided it would be a perfect time to hold hands. I know what an important part my friends played in my growing up and who I am today, especially Elizabeth, and I pray that Parker develops the same strong bonds that I developed with my hometown friends growing up. It would only be sweeter if Wilson could be one of those friends.
We also experienced Parker's first Thanksgiving. It was very low key, which was a perfect way to spend the evening. Morfar was in town and we had some of friends come over to share in the Thanksgiving festivities. Thanksgiving was held at our house this year, rather than Aunt Rachel's new apartment. However, Aunt Rachel was in charge of the turkey, and thanks to the help of her classroom teacher's aides, we had the most amazing turkey cooked in wonderful Puerto Rico spices. Parker slept through the entire dinner and woke up just in time to enjoy an evening full of games. No turkey for him this year.
Parker now laughs. A lot. It has to be one of the sweetest sounds in the world.
I know this isn't all that has been happening in our world, but it's at least a start. My goal is to carve out time each week to make sure and update this blog. Not for anyone else, while that is a great tool in keeping up with out of town family and friends, but for me. I know the days slip by so quickly. Often, so fast that I forget to really stop and enjoy them. As Parker begins to change and grow at such a quick pace, I want to be able to look back and remember these moments. He has started sitting up on his own and laughing and trying incredibly hard to crawl. I know one day, while I will remember these moments happened, I won't remember them with vivid detail. That is why I want to make sure I update this blog. I want to be able to look back on these entries and remember just how special these moments were.
In November, after we arrived home from Kentucky, Parker took his first trip to the beach. We took an afternoon and drove to Tarpon Springs to enjoy some of our favorite Greek food, but more importantly our favorite ice cream shop. Seriously, if you are ever in Hudson, Fl, you must check out Hudson Beach Ice Cream Parlor. The ice cream is all homemade and is delish! The shop is nothing special. In fact, if you were driving through, you would probably pass right by, but I promise you, it is the most amazing ice cream you will ever have. After the ice cream, we drove a little farther south to Indian Rocks Beach. The weather was a bit cloudy and dreary, making for some cool temperatures, but because of that, it provided us with a near empty beach. We were able to take our time and let Parker experience his first beach. From the time he was born, Parker has been observant. So much so, that after he was born, he almost immediately stopped crying and simply looked around the hospital room at the all the objects and people. This time was no different. He didn't show a lot of emotion, but simply had his typical raised-eyebrow, furrowed-brow look - wondering what everything was. He was able to feel the sand, as well as let the water rush over his tiny toes. The beach has always been a big part of my life. I can remember many family vacations spent on various beaches and I can't wait for Parker to experience, and more importantly remember, the memories we will make as a family.
Also, during the month of November, we were lucky enough to spend a day with one of my dearest and oldest friends, Elizabeth, her husband Andrew, and their precious boy Wilson, who is a little less than 10 months older than Parker. I know that Parker and Wilson are still too young to remember each other, much less their day spent at Disney together, but I so look forward to the day when they will be friends and get excited for their visits from each other. One of the most precious moments of the trip took place while we were watching the American Idol Experience and Parker and Wilson decided it would be a perfect time to hold hands. I know what an important part my friends played in my growing up and who I am today, especially Elizabeth, and I pray that Parker develops the same strong bonds that I developed with my hometown friends growing up. It would only be sweeter if Wilson could be one of those friends.
We also experienced Parker's first Thanksgiving. It was very low key, which was a perfect way to spend the evening. Morfar was in town and we had some of friends come over to share in the Thanksgiving festivities. Thanksgiving was held at our house this year, rather than Aunt Rachel's new apartment. However, Aunt Rachel was in charge of the turkey, and thanks to the help of her classroom teacher's aides, we had the most amazing turkey cooked in wonderful Puerto Rico spices. Parker slept through the entire dinner and woke up just in time to enjoy an evening full of games. No turkey for him this year.
Parker now laughs. A lot. It has to be one of the sweetest sounds in the world.
I know this isn't all that has been happening in our world, but it's at least a start. My goal is to carve out time each week to make sure and update this blog. Not for anyone else, while that is a great tool in keeping up with out of town family and friends, but for me. I know the days slip by so quickly. Often, so fast that I forget to really stop and enjoy them. As Parker begins to change and grow at such a quick pace, I want to be able to look back and remember these moments. He has started sitting up on his own and laughing and trying incredibly hard to crawl. I know one day, while I will remember these moments happened, I won't remember them with vivid detail. That is why I want to make sure I update this blog. I want to be able to look back on these entries and remember just how special these moments were.
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