5 Month Update

Happy 5 months, little love!

Practicing my yoga moves

All smiles!

Hands in mouth are the new norm.

I'm not eating my friend, what are you talking about??

Height/Weight: Using our bathroom scale she weighed in at 16.6 lbs! A healthy girl!

Clothes: Lots of 6-9 month and 9 month clothes. Though she did wear a 9 month jacket the other day and it left creases in her chunky little arms! Haha! 

Likes: Homegirl loves when people clap and celebrate her-I mean who wouldn't? ;) She also loves her daddy and gets so excited to see him! She also loves her daddy. As soon as he is around her face lights up!

Christmas Break snuggles with Daddy!

Dislikes: Not a huge fan of the Nose Frida, aka the booger sucker. She'll tolerate it at times, but mostly wriggles away as fast as her body will let her!

Milestones: She has found her feet! She loves to practice her yoga poses and grab her socks right off. She also seems to have figured out she has hands and can do fun things with them, like grab at her elephant on her play mat or bring things to her mouth. She started showing an interest in eating so she's tried a few foods at this point and loves it! She is definitely a Mobley with her appetite;-)

Christmas Crazy 2014

I love the hub hub and crazy of the Christmas season, and this year was certainly crazy-at one point there were four dogs running around my parents' house. We felt like the Bumpus family from A Christmas Story! But I'm jumping ahead of myself. . .

We started our celebration the weekend before Christmas with the Mobley side of the family. David's parents and brother were headed to Florida for the NC State Bitcoin Bowl Game (which they won! GO PACK!) so they wouldn't be around to celebrate Christmas Day. We had a great time relaxing and enjoying each other's company while also sneaking in a few round of Mexican Train Dominoes! It was the perfect way to kick start the celebrating and fun:-)

How many adults does it take to make a baby smile?

Figuring out this Christmas thing. . .

We then hung around and spent a few days relaxing and visiting with various friends before the big day. We usually spend the days surrounding Christmas traveling in every which direction (and there was definitely some of that!), but we made a point to wake up at our house Christmas morning so we could celebrate just the three of us. I don't know if it was the excitement of the special day or the prednisone insomnia kicking in, but I woke up at 2:30am on Christmas Day and despite all my best efforts could not fall back asleep! So you better believe I was jumping out of my skin with excitement waiting for David and Amelia Grace to wake up. Ironic that the baby slept most of the night, but the momma couldn't. . .

Well, hey there!

Family selfie waiting for Christmas Eve church to start

With some of her loot!

After we exchanged presents and got oodles of pictures of the bebita we hit the road to Winston Salem to see my branch of the family tree. With five kids (three of whom are married) it was a bit of a challenge to coordinate everyone's schedules, but we managed to get seven out of eight of us together for a couple hours! My brother, TJ, had duty at Camp Lejeune, but will be joining us for New Year's! After presents and visiting we snuck in a few rounds of the favorite family game, Catch Phrase, before turning in for the night. The celebrating continued with brunch the next day with more of our wonderful extended family.

FaceTiming with TJ at Camp Lejeune!

Things got cuckoo at times, but it was cuckoo in the best kind of way! We are so blessed to have so many people come around us with love and generosity in this beautiful season. Adding Amelia Grace to the mix this year made it that much more special and we can't wait for her to get even more involved next year!

Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup

I recently stumbled upon the bare bones of this recipe and quickly tailored it to something we would enjoy. I love it because it's easy and the perfect meal for a chilly evening. David loves it because it fills him up with lots of different flavors. Next time you're looking for something to warm up a cold night try this yummy soup!

Ingredients

3 chicken breasts

2 yellow onions, diced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

3 tbsp garlic, minced

1 15-oz can of diced tomatoes

2 cups chicken stock

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp paprika

1. 
   

Directions

Place chicken in crockpot.

Add onion, pepper and garlic.

Por tomatoes and chicken stock over the top.

Sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, oregano, and paprika.

Cover and cook for 8 hours on low.

Shred chicken before serving.

Top with avocado, cheese, and/or sour cream.

Enjoy!

Do Not Fear

I don't think it can be said enough times, but the She Reads Truth devotionals are always on point! We are currently walking through a series on Advent and today's focus on the angel coming to Joseph really spoke to my heart. 

Do not fear. 

Three simple words that speak volumes. The angel tells Joseph not to be afraid of the uncertainty coming soon. What a bold statement to follow in that time when Joseph had nothing but fear for the future. 

Do not fear.

This is something that I needed to be reminded of. It's been a while since I've posted about my kidneys because, honestly, I've been depressed about it all. About a month ago we learned my kidneys were not responding well (or at all) to the tapering process and my dosage needed to be upped significantly. Cue sinking heart. What would this mean for breastfeeding? What would this mean for the rest of my body? (Prednisone is not a medication you want to be on long term!) What would this mean for my future health? After much prayer and counsel from some very wise friends I accepted it as so and continued on with life. 

Fast forward to earlier this week when I started noticing some swelling and puffiness. Cue sinking heart. I knew what this meant-my body wasn't responding well to the prednisone. How could this be?? I'd always done well on it-what was going on?? After a series of labs and conferencing with the doctor we learned my kidney function continues to be normal (praise!) but I do have protein in my urine. In response, the doctor returned me to a higher dose of prednisone and I have labs in a few weeks to check on how I'm doing with that.

Do not fear.

This reminder came at the perfect time. I have been a hot mess of worry and fear when I really have nothing to be afraid of. God is constantly working in me and through me to glorify himself even if I don't see it now. Even if my kidneys want to act up-I have nothing to fear! God is doing HIS thing on HIS time. What a beautiful reminder for this stubborn girl. I pray that you remember this not just now as you read this full of joy in a holiday season, but also when you are beaten down and tired. 

Do not fear.

My New Accessory

Some of y'all saw this on Facebook:

And since many of y'all contacted to offer help see what had happened I figured it would be easiest just to let everyone in on the fun at one time;-)

Sooooooo around two years ago my foot started hurting while I was running. I didn't think much of it and just bought new running shoes. Problem solved. At least the problem was solved for a bit. A few months later the same thing popped up so I bought new shows. Problem solved. Then a few months later. . . well, you get the just. I didn't think much of it and just assumed that was my body's way of letting me know I needed to amp up my shoe game.

A couple of months after Amelia Grace was born I laced up my running shoes and hit the treadmill again. Soon after my foot was in pain, so I followed the pattern and got new shoes. Only this time the pain never went away. It got to the point that I couldn't even walk without being in pain. Of all the beautimus shoes I owned the only ones seeing the light of day were my Sanita clogs and cowgirl boots because those were the only ones that offered some sort of support. I finally bit the bullet and made an appointment with our family doctor who took one look and sent me on my not-so-merry way to the podiatrist.

Fast forward a few weeks when my wonderful mother-in-law was available to sit with the princess and I was on my way to the doctor. They took some x-rays and he asked a few questions, but he said he knew what it was just my looking at my history. Apparentlyyyyyyyy I have some fancy pants thing that means two bones in my foot never really fused together (apparently this isn't that uncommon) coupled with an aggravated tendon. This is then made worse by the fact that my feet flattened some during pregnancy. He says he sees lots of new moms with foot issues. Bizarre, right? 

All that leads us to my latest accessory. I get to wear this fun little number until my next appointment at the end of January. I'm supposed to wear it all the time unless I'm driving, showering, or sleeping. After the next appointment I will be fitted for some super high-level orthotics that I will have to wear for a while. He says he thinks he can get me running again, but it may not be for a while. 

Those of you with needy wee ones know this is not ideal. Going up and down the stairs with Amelia Grace is pretty terrifying right now. And trying to carry her around in her car seat is quite the challenge! I'm hoping I get used to it quickly because it all makes me so nervous! 

I would definitely appreciate prayer in this season of change:-)

Traditions

Just about every family has some sort of tradition. Whether it's to go to this person's house on Christmas Eve or to wait until all the kids are awake to go bounding down the stairs-there is some sort of custom that is followed. As we approach our first Christmas with a wee one we are much more aware of the traditions we want to keep!

One of our favorite traditions is the three gifts. David and I have always exchanged three gifts at Christmas. This helps remind us of the three gifts that were brought to baby Jesus, as well as to not go overboard on useless things! We give a "want", a "need", and something faith-based. Some times it's bigger things like a new coat that you "need" and sometimes it's new cookie sheets. Some years you "want" something to add to the garage gym and some years it's a movie. It's fun to see how things change every year! 

This is a tradition we want to keep up with Amelia Grace. Being the first bebita on both sides has some advantages and one of them is all the goodies! With that blessing we are able to focus on specific things she may "want" (as much as a baby can want that is!), "need", and show her Jesus. Between our house and that of our family's, I have a feeling this Christmas will be very good to her ;-)

Another tradition that is important to us is waking up at our house Christmas morning. I can't remember a time not waking up at our house and racing downstairs (after everyone was awake of course!) to see what Santa brought us. In fact this year will be a bittersweet because it's the first Christmas I won't be doing it at my parent's house will all my siblings, but instead we will be doing it at our house with our baby girl! I remember how much time and work my parents putting into setting up the presents and even creating obstacle courses to block us from getting downstairs too early, and I can't wait to do that for Amelia Grace! 

Something else that we started this year with our Community Group is participating in Operation Christmas Child. This is something David always did growing up and something we want to keep up with our kiddos. We want her to know that the Christmas season is not all about the presents, music, and treats, but instead about continuing to share the good news of Jesus Christ with all and that includes giving back at every opportunity!

And a tradition that I'm not too fond of, but the hubby loves-guessing gifts! I love the surprise of opening it and not knowing, but my beloved adores guessing the gifts. Anyone else do that??

I'd love to hear some Christmas traditions that you follow, or suggestions you have to add to our list! We right at the beginning so there's room for many more;-)

via

Helloooooooo, David Mobley!

4 Month Update!

Happy 4 months, little love!

Growing so big!

All smiles!

I'm gonna get you!

My what delicious hair you have. . .

Height/Weight: Amelia Grace officially weighs 15 lbs 10 oz and is in the 77th percentile for weight. She is 26 inches long and in the 96th percentile for height! Looks like she got some of her parents' height;-)

Clothes: Baby girl is wearing lots of 6 month and even some 9 month, though they are a little big. It's funny how different the sizes are based on the stores. She has 3-6m pants that fall right off, but 12m leggings from Target that are skin tight! 

Likes: She loves when her daddy sings to her-she'll "sing" back! She loves gnawing on her little fingers and has even brought my fingers to her mouth to chew on. Perhaps a little teething?

Dislikes: Not a fan of getting her arm stuck between her crib slats, but I guess that comes with the territory of scooting! 

Milestones: She is propping herself up on her elbows and scooting around some. It's more of a circular movement than forward, but it's still exciting! She's also sitting up really well in the Bumbo without any help. She giggled once a few weeks ago, but we haven't been able to catch her doing it since then. It was a full-on belly laugh!

Giving Thanks

Every year we have much to be thankful for, but this year has brought extra joy by the name of Amelia Grace. 

It's hard to believe this little turkey is 4 months old now (post coming soon!) and showing off every bit of her unique personality. We are not just thankful for our precious gift, but also for the family we get to share her with! Wednesday found us visiting the Mobleys and enjoying our first delicious meal of the year. We even managed to convince David's brother, John, to hold her! 

Thursday morning we woke up and headed to Winston Salem to see my family and chow down on another delicious meal. I think someone counted and we ended up with 20 people at my grandparent's house for our very last Thanksgiving there before they sell the house and move into something smaller. 

Both meals filled our tummies and our hearts.