Sweet Music to My Ears

"Mama-mama-mama" is what I am enjoying for the first time this morning. Eli has been saying "Dada" for the past month, but I have been patiently waiting to hear that other precious name and it finally happened. :) Yeah!!!




Marc and I are going to enjoy a nice dinner tonight with our resident friends as we mingle with lots of medical students from all over the country who are interested in "matching" at our residency program. This will only be our second night of using a babysitter other than friends or family since Eli has been born! That is pitiful but Eli is such an easy baby that we take him almost everywhere with us. I do know that Marc and I need more time to ourselves and we hope to be more regular with having nights like tonight.

On a more somber note, it has been a sad week seeing all the devastation that has happened to Haiti with the recent earthquake. Haiti is one of the world's poorest and least developed nations and most Haitians live on less than $2 a day. Many are now without food, water, and medical care and are living outside, too afraid to return to their homes that remain standing. It is unbearable to think about the hundreds of thousands who currently do not have the basics for survival and it has left me with a heavy heart much of this week as I have watched the news. Haiti has many difficult days, weeks, and months ahead.

The Church has a call to respond and I am so encouraged by the works being done thus far by groups like World Vision, Food for the Hungry, Samaritan's Purse, and Compassion. One of the most powerful passages on our call to help those in need is in Matthew 25:31-46 when Jesus separates the people of all nations into two groups, the sheep and the goats, who have either decided to serve those in need (the sheep) or ignore those in need (the goats). Jesus makes it very clear which side his followers will be on. This passage convicts me this morning, and hopefully my eyes will be more open to see the many needs around me. I hope this passage speaks to your heart as well today! Aren't we so very blessed???

Some New Favorite Things

We had a great weekend relaxing and enjoying some good family time. The weather is finally back to more expected temperatures. Aaahh! I don't normally get excited about 30 degree days but I think it is all a matter of perspective and that seems WARM to me lately. Eli got so many great presents over Christmas but none have been as useful as his high chair that his Aunt Stacey bought us. Believe it or not, I had fed this child in a Bumbo for 8 months. It had really gotten rough a few weeks before Christmas so I was delighted when the Graco Contempo High Chair finally arrived last week in the mail. I had mainly picked it out because it matched our pack 'n play pattern and it received some great reviews. I love how easy the tray is to use with one hand and how small it folds up for easy storage when we have company over. It has a removable tray that can only be removed from the front of the chair so HOPEFULLY Eli won't figure out how to take it off. This chair is so practical and I would order it again in a heartbeat!


The other thing that I am recently in love with are Pediped shoes! I found these half-off at a local baby store that was going out of business and I know I am going to order more as Eli grows out of these. They have very soft soles, seem comfortable to Eli, and stay on super well. How precious are these!

Eli was really excited for dinner out at Abuelo's to show off his new shoes

Well, Monday was here in full force today so I am heading to bed early tonight!

Baby It's Cold Outside

It has been SO very cold here this past week. Any temperature less than 20 degrees is almost unbearable to me. So, you can imagine when my car temperature gage is reading in single digits that it has been miserably cold. I have not ventured out the house at all in the past 36 hours. I ordered pizza last night since Marc was on call. It was a perfect idea and I enjoyed it very much! Spring can't come too soon for me, and hopefully this cold front is on its way out and warmer days are ahead!

I am trying to get caught up on a few things today since we had a very busy week. We hosted a couple from North Carolina this week who are both medical students and looking at our residency program for next year, and they were lots of fun. Then, we had some friends over on Thursday night for the college football championship game. Roll tide!!! I made some hummus again and am still working on perfecting this recipe. It is certainly a good base recipe to start with so I will include it at the end of this post. So, today is going to involve some cleaning, laundry, and getting a haircut later this afternoon. I am the worst about getting my haircut. It is always one of the last things on my priority list so it is always a treat when I finally go. I usually have them cut it shorter so I can wait another 3 months before going to get it cut again. Ha!

Eli has starting cruising around the couch this week which is so fun to watch. I really think in the next month he is going to be walking.





Hummus Dip (Martha Stewart)
1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
1 large or 2 small garlic cloves roughly chopped
Pinch of cumin
Pinch of nutmeg
5 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbs. tahini (sesame-seed paste) this is on the international aisle at our grocery
3 Tbs. freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 tsp. coarse kosher salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and add 1 Tbs. of water. Pulse until smooth and creamy adding more water if needed. Store in a airtight container for up to 5 days. Serve chilled or at room temperature with your favorite crackers, pita chips, or vegetables. Makes 1 3/4 cups.

Out with the OLD and in with the NEW!

We ended 2009 with a wonderful Christmas, but it was also very exhausting. In fact I am still trying to catch up from being away from home for 9 days. We love our families so much and knew since Marc and I had a full week off from work this year we had to make plans to see everyone. And we did just that! We traveled through Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois over a week's time and put about 1,800 miles on our car! I am so thankful Eli is a great traveler. We could not have done a trip like that without his cooperation and he did AWESOME.

Here is Eli at my parents' house all ready for Christmas!

Family pic!

Eli REALLY starting moving while we were gone. He has been crawling for the past month but is starting to get really comfortable moving from a sitting position to crawling and then back to sitting. And THEN he started pulling up on things while we were at Marc's parents house. He can now pull himself up alongside the couch! I think he is going to be an early walker. :)

Last night we enjoyed having a low-key New Year's Eve with some close friends at our house with some soup, sandwiches, cider, and a warm fire. I made some homemade hummus and salsa to go with the food and they both turned out really well. I will post the recipes sometime soon. We turned in early last night since Marc was on call all day today and tonight.

So, I am not a big "new year's resolutions" person. Mainly because I feel like the thing I resolve to work on each year is the same thing I think about working on every day. I need to know the wonder of God's sovereignty, the power of my Savior's resurrection, and the overwhelming comfort of the Holy Spirit's guidance on a more consistent basis. I am convicted about it daily; I pray about it some; I act on it even less. I have such a hard time sitting down to read God's word when I find life most days so very busy. I know, however, that is where I always must begin. I need to be a more loving, patient, forgiving, and gracious wife and mother in 2010 as well, but I know that when I am right with God, everything else becomes right as well. So here's to the new year and striving to fulfill my purpose of knowing and glorifying my Heavenly Father more!