a little hello...

Hi everyone!

(This look occurs multiple times a day and I just have to laugh!)

A DATE!

We are only about 3 1/2 weeks into this whole parenting thing and my mom very graciously came to stay over night and made it possible for Kit and I to go on a date. (She also made dinner for us, made sure we got naps and cleaned...mom, you rock!) It is still very funny to be anywhere without our little man. I find that I keep looking around like something is missing or that I am forgetting something. I am also blaming that on a little bit of sleep deprivation...

So Kit and I headed to Rutabegorz in Fullerton and had so much fun talking about things other than feeding schedules, how much Ryder pees and poos, and the amount of spit up our little man can produce.

The best babysitter ever! We love you mom!

I find myself looking at Kit differently. He is SOOOOO good with Ryder. He puts him to sleep better than I do, he can elicit burps from our little guy faster than anyone and Ryder still looks around like crazy when Kit comes into the room, trying to find his dad. People told me that you fall in love with your spouse even more when you watch them become a dad, but I had no idea how much...

So I love hearing what you mamas would say:

I would love to hear about the first time you had a date after you had your little person. Did you find that you talked about your baby, or did your conversation consist of everything but...?

Do you have regular date nights? How do you make them a priority? What age was your little person and do they go with you?

Thank you for always sharing your stories and advice/input with me. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it! As a new mom, I love the community of motherhood/parenthood that you share with me...

Updates and a little question to the mamas (or dads too)...

Today was the first day that Ryder and I were on our own, without Kit and with out any family, and it was a really good day. We went to Kohls to return some baby clothes. I needed to change him once we got there so I just used the back of our wagon and he didn't even cry.

Once we got home, He ate a couple of times and slept in between. While he slept, I took a little nap, did two loads of laundry, cleaned our kitchen, organized under our bed, vacuumed, and then I gave him a bath before Kit got home. (He smells so good!) On the way home from work, Kit's truck broke down so he needed to be towed to our mechanic, so Kit wasn't home until after 7pm. Kit was so bummed because that's over an hour later than normal and he missed being with us.

Ryder is really such a good baby. He is so chill. (He must get that from Kit...) My favorite thing is looking at his huge eyes, and kissing his cheeks. I love being with him and I love being his mom. Kit and I still just stare at him in disbelief that he is ours. I feel so honored to be his parent.

I look forward to MANY days with my little man. I am sure that we will all have many adventures together.

For the mamas out there:

What is your favorite outing or thing to do with the little people in your life? We would love to know...

my nemesis no longer...

After I wrote this post, I just decided to get 'er done and tackled those last two cupboards in our kitchen. So after I had napped and while Ryder was still down I was able to finish the last of organizing our kitchen.

I am so embarrassed how much stuff I had that was expired, how many duplicate spices I had and how many things were just wasted and tossed. I feel like I will be making it a regular part of my cleaning to go through these areas in our kitchen. Yuck, I hate wasting!I think this exercise made me more aware of what we have and I am going to do a better job of using stuff up, rather than throwing things out.

cousins...

Yesterday, all the cousins came out to see Ryder. Our oldest nephew hadn't met him and so it was really fun to see them all together. We love that our baby girl is going to be the little mama of the group. I mean, someone has to keep all those boys in line, right?

Our little girl and I were talking on the phone the other night and she actually said "I love you Gina, kiss Ryder, kiss Kit too. bye bye..." Seriously, I can't get enough of her!

switching mindsets...

I was reading a blog the other day (I can't remember which one...) but the mom was talking about switching your mindset of what you will get accomplished in a day when you are a parent. She talked about how instead of writing a "to do" list, writing a "ta da" list or an "I did it" list. Before Ryder's arrival, I felt like I couldn't start my day with our my little to do list for the day. Now, I find I am lucky if I get out of my pajamas through out the day, let alone getting lots of stuff done.

I loved this idea that what I do through out the day is care for Ryder. My old to do lists used to say things like :

To Do:

1. update emails

2.general clean straighten

3.clean bathrooms

4. vacuum

5. grocery store for dinner

You get the idea...

Now my list looks something like this:

Ta Da:

1. fed ryder 9 times

2. changed 10 dirty diapers

3. put non pajama clothes on

4.napped when Ryder napped

5. 1 load of laundry (all ryder's stuff...)

6.kissed kit when he left for work and when he returned

7.took a shower

I really do love being a mom and this new mindset is really making me feel so much more relaxed. Then I share my list with Kit and we both laugh, for example, how much pee and poo a little person and make...

Here is my feeding log that keeps me organized. Pretty much my ultimate "ta da" list...

(type A anyone? I swear nursing school made me this way...)

Here's my baby passed out in my lap right after a 30 minute feeding...

My little guy just hanging out... I love his face!

I love being Ryder's mom...

happy birthday baby girl!

Ok, I am losing auntie points, but on April 13, our baby girl turned 2 years old. We can't believe what an amazing little girl she is, she is such a joy. So my sister just got me some pictures and I just had to be the bragging auntie and share them with you.

spring cleaning (and organizing...)

So I have been following blogs recently that have been focusing on de-cluttering and cleaning their homes. I am amazed how organized these women can be. One of the biggest things that I struggle with is how I get attached to stuff based on a memory it represents or the sentimentality in general related to certain things. I have tried to stick to the idea that if I bring stuff into our house, I have to let other things go. Well, with our little man's arrival, I have noticed that TONS of items are coming in and really nothing is going out... So I have taken the challenge to tackle small cabinets at a time and make my way through our house. I have already tackled both of our bathrooms (I know, it would have been pathetic had I needed to de-clutter the newly remodeled bathroom, but still, all of Ryder's stuff is in there and it is all organized and in bins...), three drawers to our desk (two more to go...), all of our kitchen cabinets containing non-perishible items, (the pantry and spice/baking area remain to be my biggest nemesis in the kitchen...),our hall way closet, and our console table that holds all of our camera, phone and computer cables... The great part of this de-cluttering process is that you can clean as you go, so not only does stuff feel more organized, but it feels so much cleaner too. It also feels so good to donate items that would otherwise go unused. I know that with our little guy, stuff is going to keep coming into our house, but it seems that I have a decent game plan at this point so that clutter doesn't get out of control. Plus, doing a little bit at a time is really easy to do and isn't overwhelming at all.

Here is the blog that I have enjoyed following through this cleaning process. click here to follow.

Ah... Spring!

One of the wonderful things about living in Southern California is the weather. The truth is, I have lived here all my life and I have called it home for the last three decades. One of the wonderful things I love about spring and summer is getting to be outside

Bar-B-Queing.

It is so fun to "eat out"...

Kit,I love it when you cook!

ps: What parents would we be if we didn't show Ryder how to use the grill as early as possible. He might not look like he knows what's going on, but our little guy will be grilling before we know it...

bath time!

Our little guy's umbilical cord fell off which meant that we could give him his first bath. So yesterday, after our family went home, we decided to tackle the whole bath time together. We started off pretty good, and then it came to washing his hair and he wasn't super thrilled about that... but needless to say, Kit and I felt very proud of ourselves.

After this shot, I fed our little guy and he was out for the count. Is there is anything better than a baby fresh out of the bath. We are so in love with our little man.

meeting the cousins...

My sister brought our baby girl and one of our nephews to meet Ryder. It was so fun to have then here. It was the first time that Ryder met his cousins and it was the most precious thing...

What you can't see in the pictures is that both of the kids, while holding Ryder, were patting him and stroking his little hand and they both talked to him so sweetly.

We can't wait for lots of family memories together.

We love you guys... thanks for loving on our baby!

community...

Last night our good friends, Michael and Michelle, came over and brought us an amazing dinner. It was so good to talk and share a meal together. Plus, I had a chance to set our table and put makeup on which made me feel like such a grown up... (It's the little things...)

After dinner, they prayed over us and I was reminded of what an amazing community that Ryder is coming into. I am thankful that our friends and family are prepared to love and encourage and support him and I don't think we could ask for more.

Thank you so much Anthony's for an amazing evening... We love you!

one week birthday...

So today was Ryder's one week birthday. We just can't believe that we hadn't even met him a week ago. So in Rae family tradition, Ryder got a birthday doughnut with a candle.

Then later in the day, we had a gift certificate that we used to get Ryder's feet and handprints done. We can't wait for the finished product, but I had to show you the prints... they look 3D to us, but we are so excited to have this keepsake of our little man. Thank you guys for the amazing gift!

A little update...

We are doing really well. I have to say that we had the best experience delivering among my friends at the hospital. They took such amazing care of us and we feel like they really supported us to make every part of the process as easy of a transition as possible. I wouldn't want to deliver anywhere else.

We got home on friday morning. I love being home. Putting Ryder in his car seat and pulling up to our house and walking into our home with him was just so special. One of our neighbors mowed our lawn (Lisa, you ROCK!) My dad had made a huge pot of my favorite pasta sauce and that made the house smell so good, as well as making sure that we knew we would be eating such a good first dinner at home, and they set the table for us to have dinner.

Breast feeding is going well, a little sore but can't complain. Ryder is doing an amazing job. I love watching his face, whether he is eating or sleeping or just trying to focus on my face when I kiss his little cheeks and lips. Kit and I are getting into a routine. Kit changes him and swaddles him and burps him a lot of the time and gets him ready for me to feed him. I am so proud of Kit. He is just jumping in there and doing everything he can and I just love him even more, as I watch him move into this new role as daddy... I can't imagine doing this without him.

I take motrin for pain about once to twice a day and have been moving really well. I just have to pace myself, but I feel much better than I thought I would.

Our first night home, Ryder started the night in a bassinet at the end of our bed and then ended the night in his crib, and then when he woke up, we brought him in bed with us. I'll be honest, right now we are just rolling with the punches and figuring it out as we go, which, welcome to parenthood, huh? Troubleshooting at it's finest... I have to say that when it comes to getting up with him, though I am tired and a little sore, I enjoy doing it, he needs us so intensely right now and I love that we can be here for him. I know that that won't always enjoy getting up, but you know, he won't always need us like he does right now, so I guess it's just taking each day (or night) at a time...

These were taken by our friend today and we wanted to share them with you.

So I am thinking that Kit and I will have to turn ourselves in to addicts anonymous because we are literally addicted to our baby.

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers for our family during this transition.

They are greatly appreciated.

Ryder Pierce Rae

Our delivery day update...

So we are having a baby tomorrow, which is just the craziest thing for us to get our minds around. Our surgery time is 0930 am. We are planning on being in the hospital until friday. We will be posting pictures and updates via face book and once we arrive home, on our blog.

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers as we enter this new chapter of life. We can't wait to meet our little guy and we look forward to sharing those special moments with you!

We are off to enjoy our day together...

vanilla bean shortbread

I wanted to make something special in celebration of Easter. I am not one to try new things. I am a definite creature of habit, so it was fun to look for a new recipe to make for Kit.

So I just was going through old copies of Cooking Light magazines awhile ago and came across this recipe for a twist on shortbread. I was so excited about it and wanted to share it with you.

Click here to get it.

I hope that you enjoy it as much as we did!

Happy Easter!

Easter Invitation...

This is where we will be for Easter and we would love you to join us. Here is the link with the information.

We hope that you have a very happy easter!

Good Friday

Every year on good Friday, I am always struck with awe at the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross (and everything leading up to it.) As a 29 year old (semi) adult, I can't get my mind around it. Kit and I talk about it and no mater how any times I read the passages in scripture or see commentaries or movies or hear sermons, I am deeply moved by what He did and yet I still have a hard time comprehending it.

I was thinking about how much I struggle with understanding it, and then thought, "How are you are supposed to explain it to kids?" (I will be honest, I have this secret idea that I will just pass this stuff along to Kit and make him explain it to our kids, after all, he is the one who is trained in this sort of stuff right?) Who am I kidding, I realized that we aren't supposed to talk about the theme of Easter once a year. It's the whole reason we wake up in the morning as Christ followers, because we worship a risen and living Saviour that desires relationship with us. (I'm a little slow on the uptake sometimes...)

But with that realization comes the responsibility that we have as parents to this little person (arriving in about 5 days) to share this with Ryder. How do we live differently because of it and how will our kids know our lives are changed... DO I live differently is an even scarier question.

Nothing quite says humbling like that,huh?

I have appreciated some of the blog entries where families have utilized different tools to share the story of Easter with their kids. Everything from resurrection eggs to the following cookie recipe have given us inspiration on using creative ways to share this story of Jesus with our kiddos.

Easter Story Cookies:

Ingredients/Items needed:

Bible

1 c whole pecans

1 tsp. vinegar

3 egg whites

pinch of salt

1 c granulated sugar

1 qt. or gal. size zipper bag

wooden spoon

tape

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Place pecans in ziploc bag and let kids beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small

pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read:

John 19:1-3. Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a

crown of thorns and put it on His head. They clothed Him in a purple robe and went up to Him

again and again, saying, "Hail, king of the Jews!" And they struck Him in the face.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Add teaspoon of vinegar into the mixing bowl. Explain that

when Jesus was thirsty on the cross He was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30...Later,

knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I

am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a

stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. When He had received the drink, Jesus said,

“It is finished." With that, He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life.

Read John 10:10-11. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they

may have life, and have it to the full. "I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down

His life for the sheep."

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl.

Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our

own sins. Read Luke 23:27 A large number of people followed Him, including women who

mourned and wailed for Him.

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup of sugar. Explain that the sweetest part

of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him.

Read Psalm 34:8--Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in

Him - and John 3:16--"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that

whoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life."

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12-15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the

color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by

Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18--"Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord. "Though your sins

are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be

like wool." And John 3:1-3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a

member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you

are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform the miraculous signs you are

doing if God were not with him." In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the

kingdom of God unless he is born again."

Fold in broken nuts.

Line cookie sheet with waxed paper. Drop mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.

Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read Matthew

27:57-60 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who

had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate

ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in clean linen cloth, and placed

it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance

to the tomb and went away.

Place the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a

piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew

27:65-66 "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how."

So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting a guard.

GO TO BED. Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus'

followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 "I tell you the truth, you

will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, buy your grief will turn to joy." And

John 16:22 "So with you~ Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice,

and no one will take away your joy."

On Easter morning, open the oven and remove the cookies. Take a bite. Notice - the

cookies are hollow!

On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty.

Read Matthew 28:1-9 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene

and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the

Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His

appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid

of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, "Do not be

afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen,

just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples:

"He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.

Now I have told you." So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and

ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them, "Greetings," He said. They came to Him,

clasped His feet and worshipped Him.

Thank you to the blog flythroughourwindow for this really cool family experience!

All my blabbering to say, I am so thankful that Christ did what he did, though I do not understand it, it makes me even more in love with my Jesus.

We are on our way to the hospital...

...for pre-op lab work... Happy April Fools Day!

(No seriously, when will I get the chance for any baby related aprils fools joke in the future...

I had to take my chance...)

So we are headed off to our last appointment before Ryder's arrival, I can't believe he will be here in just a few days!

I hope that you have a wonderful day!

Thank you for all your prayers going into our c section. I can't tell you how much we appreciate them...