Come On In 2010!

I am so glad that tomorrow is a brand new day and the start of a new year. The last day of 2009 sure has not gone quite the way I planned.

To start off with, Micah did not fall asleep until 2:30 this morning. Today was my work outside the home day and I was supposed to get up at 5:00 so that I could get everything packed and everyone dressed to be out the door by 7:15. Somehow, the alarm did not get set after Joe left for work at 3:30, and I woke up at 7:02! Thirteen minutes is simply not enough time to pack lunches, nurse Micah, fix bottles, shower, dress three children, give everyone their meds, dress myself, and get supper in the crock pot. I finished up and walked out the door at 8:00, only forty-five minutes late. I called my boss on the way to the sitter and left a message saying that I would be in a little later than usual. When I got to the sitter, she met me at the door saying that her child was sick with a fever and she thought he had the flu. LOVELY!

I gave up on work for the day, packed all of the kids back into the car and headed home. Both Noah and Jonah were upset that they did not get to play at the sitter's house, so they were not in the best of moods. During Jonah's nap time, Noah and I experimented tried out a new recipe that turned into a disaster. Not only did we waste perfectly good ingredients, I ended up with chocolate strung from one end of the kitchen to the other.

After Joe came in from work, things calmed down a bit. We went to my Grandmother's house to have supper (my crockpot chili from this morning) and shoot fireworks. By the time we got home it was time for bedtime routines and once again meds all around. The kids have been sick for some time now. It seems as soon as they get over something, they come down with something else. I am dispensing thirteen prescription medicines among my three children twice a day.

I was telling Joe that I don't know how I have managed to keep all of the kid's medicines straight for the past few weeks when I realized that I had just given Noah one of his medicines twice. Not only had I given it to him twice, but I had given him double the dosage amount each time. This meant that my child had just ingested four times the amount of medicine that he was supposed to have.

1-800-922-1117

Does anyone recognize that number? It is the poison control hotline. I memorized it when Noah was a baby after he drank a bottle of formula mixed with Christmas tree preservatives. (Long story for another time!) Anyway, I spoke with a very nice lady who took all of my information and told me that Noah would be just fine. He just needed to drink plenty of clear liquids to dilute the meds in his system. I gave him one glass of juice and three glasses of water. Did I mention that I give meds at bedtime? I am assuming that I will be changing sheets in the morning.

So the last day of 2009 has definitely not been my best. Come on in 2010...it can only go up from here!

Proud Momma

Me: Noah what is your best Christmas present?
Noah: You know!
Me: Well, I'm pretty sure, but I want to see if I am right.
(Thinking he is going to say his bike)
Noah: The best gift is Baby Jesus!

Bumps And Bruises

Jonah has once again proven to us that he needs to be in full body armor at all times. Tonight we decided to put some pork chops on the grill. Joe was out back getting the grill ready while I was in the kitchen getting the rest of supper done. Noah was out riding his new bike through the mud, Micah was eating Cheerios off the floor, and Jonah was standing at the back door feeding the dog leftovers...with a spoon. Pretty normal evening at my house. All of a sudden I heard several thumps. By the time I reached the back door, Jonah was at the bottom of the steps on top of the dog. Joe got to Jonah before I did and said that he saw the whole thing but could not get there in time to catch him. Jonah had lost his balance and both he and the dog went for a quick trip to the bottom of the steps. Jonah ended up with a scrape down the side of his face, a bump on his arm, and a cut right on the top of his head. Add that to the cold that he already had and he has turned into a horrible crank! Hopefully all will be feeling better soon.

Merry Christmas

It is hard to believe that an entire year has passed since I sat down to write last year's Christmas letter. Time really has a way of getting away from us! Looking back over the events of this year, it seems as if some of them were only yesterday.
January
This was a big month for Noah. He turned five years old, lost his first tooth, and experienced his first ER trip due to a scary case of croup.
February
Joe and I found ourselves outnumbered as we finally welcomed Micah Joseph Givens into our family. He came to us weighing 9 lbs. 3 oz. and was 20 inches long.
March
A month of adjustment as we all tried to figure out our new "normal" and I recovered from my c-section. Micah gave us his first real smile and Jonah got his first haircut.
April
Oops, a bump in the road. Just when we thought we were getting the hang of things, Joe had to take me to the ER on Easter Sunday and I spent five days in the hospital with an infection. Joe and I celebrated our sixth anniversary with me being released from the hospital. Many thanks go to our families for stepping up and taking over for us.
May
Busy, busy, busy! Trying to make up for lost time we packed a lot of activities into this month. We picked berries, visited the Great Swamp Sanctuary, celebrated Joe's 33rd birthday, and started fencing in our backyard. We also welcomed our newest addition to the family, a black and white bunny named Spotter Bunny Givens.
June
Noah overcame his fear of heights and started sleeping on the top bunk. I began praying that Jonah would develop a fear of heights and would stop trying to be an acrobat. We seriously considered putting him in body armor! My birthday fell on Father's Day, so Joe and I shared our special day.
July
Another busy month. Micah cut his first two teeth, started rolling, and ate his first bite of solid food (mashed banana). We spent July fourth down at the river enjoying family. Joe and I decided that we would send Noah to Kindergarten outside of the home, so Noah and I toured schools and finally decided on Edgewood Baptist Preschool. All of the boys enjoyed Veggie Tales Bible School at church.
August
We spent a lot of time at the beach, trying to stay cool. Jonah started sleeping in his big boy bed. At five years old, Noah experienced his first trip to a mall to do school shopping. This just shows how far out in the sticks we really do live!
September
Jonah really started verbalizing more and was not shy about talking! Noah started his first day of Kindergarten and LOVED it. I settled into a good routine of spending time alone with Jonah and Micah in the mornings and then getting them down for naps when Noah came home around twelve so that he and I could spend time together.
October
Micah's top two teeth came in and he started crawling. We had a birthday party for our now two year old Jonah. As a family, we enjoyed several Harvest festivals and antique tractor shows. The boys dressed as the three blind mice for Halloween. Joe was the farmer and I was the farmer's wife. We won first place in the group category at our church harvest costume contest.
November
I learned that baby oil gets sweet tart chews out of a toddler's hair. Jonah learned not to go to sleep with a sweet tart chew in his hand. Micah learned how to pull up to a standing position. We all learned how important it is to give to others and were thankful that we were able to do so.
December
This month we are focusing on the true meaning of Christmas and celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The Book of Luke tells us of the Christmas story beginning with; and it came to pass. I have taken that phrase to heart this year. This too shall pass...and so I am going to enjoy every minute while I can.
There will come a time when these crazy days of raising a family have passed and all I will be left with are the memories of these days. Because of that knowledge, I am trying to cherish every moment we have together and store up plenty of memories to keep me company for when "this too has passed." May you also use this Christmas season and coming New Year to create cherished memories with those that you love.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!
Joe, Denise, Noah, Jonah, and Micah Givens

Busy Season

One live nativity, four Christmas programs, two family reunions, Christmas shopping, one school Christmas party, Christmas caroling, and two birthday parties....this all in addition to our regularly scheduled programing! It has already been a busy month for us indeed.

This morning I woke up feeling like the rush was over. We are ready. The gifts are wrapped and under the tree, the Christmas cards have been sent, and the house is clean (relatively speaking... remember that I do have three children). I stayed up late last night making sure everything was finished. Now it is time to slow down and take in the rest of the Christmas season. This week will be about enjoying our family while remembering the true Reason we are celebrating to begin with.

We will take time this week to finish reading all of our Christmas books, to laugh at the way Jonah sings Christmas carols, to discuss those important questions that Noah has been asking more and more of, and to watch Micah try and fit the baby Jesus from the nativity scene into his mouth just one more time. So pardon me while I am away for a few days, it is time for me to slow down, make memories with my family, and really contemplate God's incredible love for us.

Rice Patch Christmas Program

We had our church Cristmas program Sunday night. Noah was the only one of my boys to have a part in the actual program. After the program we all gathered in the fellowship hall and had a special visitor.

This is Micah with Pa, waiting for the program to start.

Noah was a shepherd (on the right).

Both Micah and Noah took a turn sitting in Santa's lap. Despite the fact that I have no pictures of him, Jonah really was there that night. He was just not really sure about sitting with Santa. Add to that the fact that I was really not sure about putting him on stage in front of our church congregation, and there you have the reason he stayed behind the scenes. However, he did get close enough to Santa to inform him that he wanted a bike for Christmas.

Edgewood Christmas Program

Noah's school Christmas program was last night. He had been practicing for weeks and was so excited to perform. He even picked out a button down shirt and brand new tie to wear. That is a very big deal for my casual dressing son!

This is the entire school on stage for the final song of the night. He had his class Christmas party today and now he is out of school for two whole weeks. Christmas vacation, here we are!