1. Brennan's self-portrait:

He says he is going to wear glasses "when he gets four years old."  Below his smile the three blobs are the "river" (stream) that will be behind our new house, a balloon, and an island.  I'm not sure why they're inside his face. 

2. Cora's sleep position:

There is so much to love about this.  First and foremost, it is significant to note that she is sleeping flat on her back!  She has done this every time she has slept for the past 48 hours!!  This, in and of itself, is a huge victory. 

Another victory, not as obvious, is the fact that Cora is now taking a pacifier when she falls asleep.  (It had fallen out by this point, but you can see it beside her.)  Again, huge. 

And the obvious cute reason I took the photo is the elephant lovey.  Cora really likes to have that thing over her face when she falls asleep.  It makes me nervous (I have suffocation and breathing hang-ups), so I always monitor her and move it when she is asleep, but I had to laugh at how effectively she used it just to cover her eyes for her nap yesterday.

It's the little things.

The Valentine's Day countdown continues in our house.  Each day Jim and I read a small card from an envelope on our bathroom mirror:

The cards give us a small, romantic task to complete daily, and it has been so fun!  I can't believe we've never done this before!  I didn't make up the tasks, but I found them on the Love, Actually blog.  Whoever wrote them did a great job of making the tasks reflect different love languages (gifts, touch, words, acts of service, etc.).  Since I respond to all of the love languages, this has filled my "love tank" on a daily basis.  It also confirmed what I have suspected all along: My primary love language is acts of service.

On Wednesday, this was our task:

I didn't know how I would accomplish this, as I was stuck at home with a very feverish boy and a four-month-old baby.  I instant-messaged Jim early in the morning to tell Jim that Brennan had a fever of 104, and while I was busy complaining, I told him that my already-crappy flat iron had bit the dust.

(No, it should not be bent like that!)

That afternoon, at lunchtime, I heard the front door of our house unlock (a bit unnerving, as no one has that key and Jim and I always enter through the garage).  In walked Jim, bag in hand.  He presented me with this:

It's a CHI!!!  Not only did my prince charming go out of his way to drive to two different stores on his lunch break, purchase a new flat iron, and deliver it to our house, all before rushing back to his desk, but he also did research about what type of flat iron would be best and spent a pretty penny getting me the top of the line.  

I cried.  The effort, the sacrifice, the expense, the thought... It was so sweet.  

The next day, when Brennan was feeling better, we surprised Jim at work with homemade Valentine's Day cookies.

I think my impromptu back massage the night before had meant more to Jim than the cookies (his love language is physical touch), but his expression when he saw Brennan standing in the lobby with a plate full of cookies was pretty terrific.  

I love Valentine's Day, and I love my husband.

Well, life is as unexpected as ever around here.  Yesterday I was supposed to work on a sewing project and attend a parent-teacher conference (scheduled for all kids in the class).  But instead I found myself watching American Idol in my bedroom with the door closed so Brennan could rest quietly on the sofa.  He had a fever of almost 104 before I gave him anything, was as white as a sheet, and felt miserable. This morning he is doing much better and his temp just shy of normal without any medicine.  

In other news, Cora found her feet a few weeks ago, and she likes to pull on her socks.  The other night Jim came out of the bedroom where she was sleeping and said, "Will you go in and look at how your daughter is sleeping?  You might as well just bring the camera."  I went in to find this:

It sort of reminds me of when I would go to bed with new shoes as a child or when Jim would dream in code when working on a big project.  

I wish I could sleep however and wherever I wanted!  With all of the illness round here, I'm exhausted!

Dear Cora,

I am so sorry that today, as you turn four months old, you have an ear infection and feel like this:

But the good news is that you now have your antibiotics, and by tomorrow you should feel more like this:

We love you, baby girl!

- Mommy and Daddy

Today our deck looks like this. (Check out Brennan's little bike, almost buried in the snow!)

And I can't even get a picture of the roads, because I'm not venturing down our vertical driveway.  You'll just have to trust me that it's icy and slick.  The city has come to a halt.  Schools were closed on Friday, church has been canceled for tomorrow, and birthday and shower festivities for the weekend have been rescheduled.

There is only so much you can do when you're stuck in the house for days at a time.  Brennan and I have been in a crafting frenzy.  He has colored countless pictures, we started making his valentines for his friends at school, and we made "stained glass" hearts with crayon shavings and wax paper.  (I don't know who this child is that has overtaken my son's body, but he can stay for a while.)

We showed Brennan how glitter works yesterday.  Hopefully he didn't like it too much.   

I made a Valentine's Day countdown for Jim and myself with a simple, romantic activity to do every day until Valentine's Day.  Should be fun... at least for me.  ;-)  I hung it on the bathroom mirror because it is just for us and I wanted it to be separate from the stuff I do for the kids.

Cora and Brennan have both had colds, and Cora's seems to be getting worse.  She cried much of the day today, and I'll probably need to take her to the doctor on Monday morning.   I'm concerned that it has moved to her ears.  I miss seeing this smiley face:

I really feel like I have run out of creative ideas to keep the kids happy and busy.  Hopefully the sun will come out and start melting this ice, though I'm not too optimistic...

Today we are having a quiet day at home. There was talk earlier of Home Depot and paint chips, or maybe a trip to look at houses for brick and siding ideas, a trip to Hendersonville to look at the model home again and take measurements, or an outing to the fabric store. But the rainy, gray weather has us beat, and it's probably in our best interest anyway. We've had a crazy week, and we're all paying for it. Brennan and Cora both have head colds (just sneezing and runny noses), and all of us are exhausted. In fact, we even stayed home from church today because Brennan woke up sounding pretty congested. (We don't think he's contagious, but it seemed like a good idea for all of us to stay home.)

Our busy week culminated yesterday with an extra busy day. In the morning Brennan had a fun and chaotic space-themed birthday party, and I had the swap meet here at the house. After the boys got home from their party, our babysitter arrived, and Jim and I drove down to sign the purchase agreement on our house. It's official now. We will be the proud owners of a brand-spanking new house by the start of the summer!

But today we sit. There are always things to do, but movies, blankets, comfort food, and wooden train tracks beckon us today. It's going to be a busy several months, so we had better rest while we can.

Yesterday I hosted my first ever swap meet. It was so much fun! Everyone brought home decor items and brunch items. We hung out, ate, and found new treasures for our homes - for free! Everyone seemed to have a good time, and several people said that we should make it an annual tradition. Sounds good to me! Any excuse to have a party!

(No, this is not the Biggest Loser, and I am not endorsing Ritz or any other products!)

The best part of the morning?  People left with some really great stuff for their homes.  I was genuinely concerned that we'd all just end up swapping empty picture frames, but that didn't happen.  I can't wait to do this again!  I may have to do an accessories swap this summer when we're settled in the new house. Thanks to everyone who came and made the party fun!

Riding in the car today, this was my conversation with Brennan. I had to share it because he amazes me.

Brennan: Oh, look! There's PetSmart!

Me: Yes, that's right, Brennan.

Brennan: Not everyone goes to PetSmart.

Me: No, not everyone goes there. Some people don't have pets, so they don't have to go there. We have three pets, so we go there a lot. Actually, we have three pets, plus Daddy has a fish tank at work.

Brennan: Yeah... Mommy? Three plus one makes four.

Me (shocked): Yes, Brennan. That's really great math!

Brennan: Yep, sure is!

Me: What is two plus two?

Brennan: Four!

Me: Wow! You are so smart! What is two plus one?

Brennan: Three.

Me: What is two plus three?

Brennan: Ten.
(I showed him how to use one hand to represent the two and one hand to represent the three, and then he got it right.)

Brennan: Mommy, what is ten plus four?

Me: Fourteen.

Brennan: What is twelve plus three?

Me: Fifteen.

Brennan: You are really good at math, too!

Me: Thanks, Brennan. You know, before you were born, I taught kids how to do math. That was my job. I was a teacher!

Brennan: Oh. Cool. I'm all done with this.

Me: Okay!

Brennan: We can do more math tomorrow.

Has anyone told my son he is three???

For the last two years we have been renting a beautiful house in Nashville.  We moved here in February 2008, unsure of what exactly our future held.  We put our house in Dallas on the market and loaded a small truck with only our clothes, dishes, and other essentials, prepared to stay in a semi-furnished condo until our house sold. Before we left, I prayed very specifically that our house would sell to the first person who saw it.  I begged God to make an already-difficult move easier by giving us a more permanent home as quickly as possible.  And God moved in a big way.  After three days on the (already-failing) market, we sold to the first person who saw our house.  I was overcome with gratitude.  I still cry when I talk about it.

Our House in Dallas

When our house sold so quickly, we had to move fast to find someplace to live.  We knew the size house we wanted, the area we hoped for (based on limited exposure to Nashville), and the price we were willing to pay.  We wanted to rent so we could save for a down payment on a new house (we weren't yet debt-free prior to the move), and it seemed like our wish list was impossible to fill.  And then God moved again.  A house in our price range with a desirable location opened on RealTracs.  The catch?  No photos.  We all know what that means.  It's usually a dump, right?  Well, we drove by and found this:

It's anything but a dump.  In fact, it's beautiful.  It's a crazy story, but, in the end, suffice it to say that we believe God held out on this house just for us, because rooting us in this area was a part of His plan. 

And now we are being humbled once again.  God provided funds for a down payment even in a difficult economy (I still don't know how we saved anything these last two years), and we started seriously searching for homes at the beginning of the new year.  You would think that after providing for us again and again, I would expect big things from our Heavenly Father, but I never like to expect a gift.  Regardless, God is a giver, and He loves to lavish us with things we don't deserve.

Our next big gift?  Well, I don't have a picture yet, but it will probably sit right here:

And this will be in our huge back yard (minus some of the brush):

(This one is taken at the end of the street.)

And I will get to drool over this view every day:

If God continues to work the way He has worked all week, this sign will no longer be there on Saturday afternoon:

Gratitude doesn't begin to cover it. 

Brennan had his first trip to the dentist last week.  He did great!  We went to Dr. Snodgrass in Cool Springs and I was sooooo impressed!!!  Those people know how to make the dentist fun!  The waiting area was every kid's dream: huge fish tank, Disney shows on TV, lego table, stuffed animals, arcade games...  And the staff was wonderful to Brennan.  It is definitely a plus to have a true pediatric dentist.  Growing up, I did not have a pediatric dentist, and one time he was so rough with me I bit him and drew blood!  Anyway, Brennan's teeth were just perfect, so we don't have to go back for six months!

Cora has recently taken to sucking her thumb... Hopefully she'll quit before she's too old and has to have Dr. Snodgrass correct a horrible overbite!