Dear Mr. Sunshine...

Dear Mr. Sunshine,

I miss you so much! I wish so badly that you would come back and sit in the sky. I REALLY want to go outside and play, but it's always raining, or it's cold. Even on the days when you are in the sky, Mommy still won't let me stay outside long. She says it's "chilly", but I know I could handle it. I am tired of my nose running and seeing Mommy come at me with the tissue. I miss the days when we could play outside, not be cold, not to have to wear all these jackets and hats, and not have a runny nose. I have this really cool red wagon that I love to ride in. I also like to swing and I love when Mommy strolls me around. We need the sun to do those things! Please, please Mr. Sunshine, come back soon! I will be very good, I promise!

Love,

Landon

Remembering when Mr. Sunshine was in the sky...

Come back, Mr. Sunshine!

A Grandma's Love

(Dec 25, 2009)

Sadly, we lost my beloved Grandma this weekend. Grandma was 91, and oh did she live a wonderful life! I was so blessed to be incredibly close with my Grandma. My parents were 21 when I was born, and I spent a lot of time over at my Grandma and PawPaw's house while my parents worked and had date nights. I spent many summers with them too when school was out. I have so many fond memories of doing things with them. Gardening, cooking, playing, we did it all.

I loved going with Grandma every week to get her hair done. Afterwards, we would always stop at Dairy Queen to get a blizzard. My Grandma had a HUGE sweet tooth, so of course I indulged her by agreeing to some ice cream! Everytime I went to Grandma's house (even if it was just for us to go eat dinner), there would be a small treat for me in "my drawer" of her dresser. Sometimes it was some stickers, or a yo-yo, or markers. I loved the anticipation of running back to the bedroom to see what she had gotten for me this time! She did the same thing for my brother years later. When she moved out of her house in Stone Mountain to come to Snellville, we found a huge bag of small toys and goodies that she had stashed away.

Even after Grandma lost a lot of her independence, I still loved visiting with her, and I will cherish all of our chats. Now that I have a child, I understand more this love that comes from grandparents. Nothing makes Landon's grandparents light up like seeing their grandson! I joke all the time that Mimi and Papa love Landon more than anyone else!

Landon is so blessed to have such a wonderful Grandma and Mimi. They already lavish him with the same love that Grandma gave me. Words cannot express how happy I am that he will have a close relationship with them. There's something about a Grandma's love...My grandma said to me recently that she always thought of me as her's, and yes, I was her's. She was my second Mom. Even though we were 60 years apart, I loved our bond. Was I the spoiled first grandchild? Probably. But I was definitely loved beyond my wildest dreams.

I can't wait until Landon is older and I can tell him all about his fantastic great-grandmother. I have so many stories to make him laugh and keep her memory alive. I can't wait for Landon to truly experience his grandparents' love for him. It's amazing, and I'm so blessed to have had it for so long!

Grandma, I will miss you so very much. Please hug Grandpa for me and enjoy all the ice cream you want!

Look who's walking!

This was taken a little over a week ago, and he's getting better and better everyday! Don't worry, I've got my running shoes ready!

A VERY different New Year's Eve...

Here's Landon this New Year's Eve! Look how happy! However, that was not the case last year...

Here is Landon last New Year's Eve...
Last New Year's Eve sweet little Landon was 5 weeks old and had what we thought was a bad cold. He was very lethargic and not his happy little self. When he woke with a fever during the night, I called the doctor's office first thing that morning. I knew that fevers+little babies=no good. However, I was not expecting to hear, "You need to bring him in right now." Ummm, ok. So we hopped in the car, and I was surprised when they took us right back. Let me back up to say that I honestly thought that Landon had a cold and they would give him some kind of antibiotic and send us on our merry way.

The next surprising thing we heard was, "You need to walk over to the hospital and have him admitted." WHAT???!!!???! I wish there would've been a video camera in that little room, cause you would've seen Kris and I's mouths drop to the floor. Needless to say, they ran all kinds of tests, including a spinal tap (which scared the pee out of me), to rule everything out. Apparently, it can be so many bad things when little babies spike fevers. He was finally diagnosed with RSV, and we were told he would be in the hospital at least 3 days.

Happy New Year to us, right? As a new mommy, I can tell you that being in the hospital with my helpless little baby was so very hard (and you know I shed some major tears). Kris and I prayed together many times over Landon, and we knew that God would take care of him and guide us to the right decisions for him. Luckily, Landon had a mild case of RSV, and we were able to get a room with a bed in it so that we could stay with him the whole time. Poor Landon had an IV in his head (less chance of him ripping it out) and a breathing tube around his face and nose. Kris and I took turns holding him 24/7 while he slept and tried to get better and received breathing treatments around the clock (Those are fun in the middle of the night!). It was also the worst sleep of our lives! Landon was on a breathing monitor that was sooooo sensitive, so anytime we moved, it BEEP BEEPED like crazy. It must've gone off every 5 minutes. Landon slept through it all!

We are so blessed that Landon turned out to be just fine, and that God was watching over us. I learned a lot about being a mommy in those few days. I also learned that I will give anything in the world to take away my child's pain, and I would gladly trade places with him when he's sick.

So this New Year's Eve is quite different. Landon woke up with no cold, no fever, and a whole year older. And he's definitely a lot happier! Once again, Landon won't be sleeping at our house for New Year's Eve, because he'll be sleeping over at Mimi and Papa's! Happy New Year and may your family be as blessed as ever in 2010!

It's almost Christmas!

It's almost Christmas Day, and we're so excited! We've been very busy attending playdates, having family gatherings, and enjoying this fabulous time of the year! More to come later, but here's what a Christmas tree looks like in our house with a one-year-old on the loose! He's into EVERYthing!!!

Braselton Christmas Parade!

I'm a wee bit behind on this, but recently we have the privelege of being a part of the annual Braselton Christmas Parade! There was a lot of people there, too! Our church had 2 floats in the parade. The elementary kids float was "Happy Birthday Jesus!" theme, and the younger kids' floatwas a manger scene. Here's the elementary kids' float:

And here's the wonderful manger scene! (Notice Joseph and Mary sitting in the stable with Baby Jesus, and our "Star" at the front!)


You have to have 3 wise men at the manger scene too!

The younger kids could dress as angels or stable animals, so of course we chose an animal! (I wanted to use Landon's Halloween costume, but apparently, monkeys were not at Jesus' birth!) We borrowed from the fabulous Jana, a chicken costume!
Trying to get a picture of the chicken, cow (Cade), and sheep (Jaxson)!

Landon posing with Jaxson and Tanner the sheep!

I love this blue-eyed chicken! We had so much fun at the parade! Our float won for Best in Show too! We can't wait for next year's parade!

One year ago today...

One year ago today, my life was changed forever. I gave birth to Landon David Jones on November 24, 2008. I am still so surprised that this year has flown by before I even knew it. Here's Landon on the day of his birth:

And here's Landon today, on his birthday! He's one!

We celebrated this morning with birthday pancakes (stolen from the ultra-creative Rebecca Moon)!

We had a busy days visiting friends, getting pictures made, and having lunch with Papa. They even made him a birthday cinnamon pretzel at Mellow Mushroom, and he loved it! For dinner, Landon had a few of his favorite foods, goldfish, green beans, and spaghetti!

A letter to my one year old angel:

Dear Landon,

Your daddy and I waited for you for so long. After two years of hoping and praying for a baby, it was you that God chose for us. I imagined all the while I was pregnant of what you would look like, how you would act, and who you would become. I read all kinds of books, and I was sure I was ready for you. Nothing could've prepared me though for the immense amount of love I felt the instant you were born. You have changed my life and made me a better person. I strive everyday to be the best mommy I can to you, and I pray that I'm raising you in the way God desires. Motherhood is the greatest adventure, and I love waking up everyday, knowing I'm going to get to spend it with you!
You are so fun and charming to be around! You are always on the move, and proving to be "all boy" in everything you do. You love to be held and walked around, and sitting still is not your favorite thing to do! You love dogs, being outside, looking at books, playing, and of course, eating. You love every piece of food you've tried, and I love that you are (for now) a great eater! You love to make people smile by clapping your hands or doing "Touchdown"! You give great open mouth kisses, and you also show love by giving gentle headbutts, especially to your Papa. You sleep through the night, and I am thankful you've been doing that since you were 10 weeks old! Your favorite toys are the ones that you can press the buttons on, and you try to figure out how things work (just like your Daddy). You adore Elmo and Super Why the most, and a hurricane could come through here when they're on and you wouldn't care! You make us smile with all that you do. Even when you're fussy and not in a good mood, it's so hard not to see your cuteness! Everyone comments on that beautiful red hair and those gorgeous blue eyes. I melt when I look at you, and I am amazed everyday that I get the pleasure of being your mommy. You are our miracle, and I thank God everyday for giving you to us. This has been a fabulous year, and I know there will be so many more to come. We love you more than you'll ever know! Happy 1st birthday Landon!

Love, Mommy