Just saying "no" to facebook (for 3 weeks)

I've been realizing for quite awhile that I've been spending entirely too much time mindlessly scrolling through Facebook and to a lesser extent, Twitter. However, after we moved to California, my habit got worse. Facebook was a life line back to KY. We had no connections to the Bay Area other than a few people Jeremy had met through Twitter. Facebook really helped me cope by allowing me to post fun photos of the family in a completely new "vacation-like" setting. Then, I could look forward to reading many affirming, positive comments from our friends and family back home. Our closest friends and family were wondering how we were doing and this was an easy, convenient way to communicate. No problem with that at all--in moderation.

Fast forward to six months later and now we have built up a community of people from church, preschool, MOPS, neighbors, etc. Our relationships are still in the early stages, but it's not like we are completely alone out here anymore. However, the Facebook habit is a difficult one to shed. If I have a free moment, a waiting moment, a dull moment, or just want to finish reading the latest and greatest "shared" on-line article, it is all too easy to pick up my phone and do it. I really have no idea how many times I quickly checked my phone a day. Dozens, I'm sure. I didn't know how to limit myself. Check it once an hour? Once or twice a day? But what about when I'm just bored and waiting in-line somewhere? Was there anything wrong with that? I didn't have an answer and I didn't have the desire to do an "intervention" for myself.

During the last couple of weeks at church, Pastor Ryan encouraged us to devote the next three weeks to focused prayer for the church. (Nothing bad is going on. In fact, it is an exciting time in the life of our church.) He encouraged us to pray and fast. Fasting could be a literal fasting as in giving up food in some way or it could be fasting from something that is taking up too much of our time or having a negative influence in our lives. (Aha moment.) Facebook would be the perfect thing for me to give up for a time. Even knowing that I needed a break, I still really had a hard time deciding what to do. Give up Facebook only? All social media? What about the internet? Well, I decided to fast just from Facebook and Twitter. I've allowed myself to continue using Instagram because it has not taken up much of my time. I have kept the number of people I follow on Instagram quite low so that I can scroll through single photo images in less than a minute. Also, I have found Instagram to be less negative to my psyche.

Here's the deal with how Facebook affects me at times. I often check Facebook when I'm at home and not doing anything special. So, when you're not doing anything, there's a pretty good chance that at least one of your hundreds of friends has something awesome to share. Maybe they are sharing the ubiquitous "Date night!" photo. Or maybe it's their latest vacation. Or the fabulous meal they are about to eat. Or the beautiful room they just redecorated. Or a photo or quote from their super smart, talented, cute kid.  Whatever it is, it often can hit you at a low moment and then make you feel, "less than." It is hard to put an emotion on how it can make me feel. I don't think it is envy. I am glad to see my friends and family happy and doing well. I don't begrudge them nice vacations or date nights or beautiful homes. I guess it can just make me ask, "Am I measuring up to my peers? Am I where I SHOULD be at this stage in my life? Am I living my life to the fullest?" Then, it can be hard to confront those answers. Some of the time I don't like where my thoughts drift. Then it is a short step away from DISCONTENTMENT.

And this my friends, is why I am giving up Facebook for the next three weeks. I do not want this tool of communication to breed discontentment in my life. I want to focus more on being grateful for what I have. The ironic thing is that many of my friends have commented about my life and that they love to see the "adventures" we are living. (Numerous people have actually said these exact words to me.) After these three weeks are over, I'm not sure how to put better limits on my use of social media. I hope that I can figure out a good plan because I do enjoy communicating and sharing with people, but there's a real negative side, too.

Christmas 2013

We spent the holidays in KY with our families for TWO whole weeks! (Dec. 18th-Jan. 2nd.) What a blessing! We are really enjoying Twitter's vacation policy.  Jeremy took about 2 1/2 weeks off at Christmas and it was no big deal (at least not this year.) He said most of his coworkers in the design dept. took off one week or more. We flew out of Oakland's airport which is only six miles from our house vs. flying out of San Francisco. We flew Southwest airlines from Oakland-Vegas-Louisville. Overall the flights went well and we had no problems with late flights, missing baggage, or anything like that. The flights were completely full. The airports were crowded. I can't imagine what it would be like even closer to Christmas! We elected to not buy Caleb his own seat. It actually worked out pretty well because then our whole family could take up a row of three together. Caleb is at the most challenging age ever for flying. It is very stressful and not fun. Of course we plan as much as we can to make things go smoothly, but it is still difficult with him. I do not feel that I can fly with both kids by myself yet. Of course, we had way more luggage and carry-ons for a Christmas trip home so it will be quite a bit easier to fly in the summer. Flying Southwest worked out very well for us since they are one of the few airlines that don't have baggage fees. We were able to check six bags at no cost (two per ticketed customer.) This came in really handy for Christmas. I checked a large foot locker filled with outgrown kids clothes to give to my sister-in-law and friend. On the return trip, I filled it with presents. Even then, we still mailed back two large packages. This year was a HUGE learning experience for how to do Christmas when flying in from out of state. Overall, things went very well, but I also learned a few things that will hopefully make it easier next time.  

Emily with Dinkney and Poppy after our night out to see The Nutcracker. 

We arrived in Louisville late Wednesday evening and spent a few days with Jeremy's family. Mom and Dad picked us up for a week long trip to Bowling Green and brought us back to spend the last days in Louisville. (Thanks for the van pick-up!) We were lucky to get to spend a week with each family.

My Dad and my boy

Celebrating my birthday Dec. 23rd with my favorite Christmas treat:
 a caramel popcorn Christmas wreath.

Camp Lee

Yum!

Emily and Jeremy had fun roasting "marshies"

Rebecca, Maddie and I enjoying birthday treats

Matching Christmas PJs! Believe it or not, Becca and I did not coordinate this. Hilarious! Our PJs were a gift from Aunt Jen and she embroidered them herself! 

Love my photogenic Emmy

Handsome little boy

Santa always puts an orange at the bottom of their stockings.
Em does not look impressed! Don't worry. She got lots of other goodies she loved!

Christmas morning with baby boy.

Christmas morning TRYING to get a pic with the kiddos. Yeah, not happening!

Merry Christmas 2013!

We spent Christmas with my parents this year since we were with Jeremy's parents Christmas Day last year. Mom and Dad were kind and understanding to give us just enough personal space to enjoy our own little family's Christmas morning gift giving while still being present to enjoy the morning. Emily's favorite Santa gifts were her Calico Critters tree house and two-wheeled scooter. Caleb's favorite gifts were the dump truck and ball set (football, basketball, and soccer ball.) He got a cute Little People Barn and farm set which he likes OK, but not as much as his cars and balls! Jeremy and I allowed the kids to open one gift on Christmas Eve which was their gifts to one another. My siblings and I used to do this when we were little so I like the idea of carrying on this little tradition.

Trying out the present from Santa--a new Scooter! Cooper got one, too!

One of Em's favorite gifts from Nan.

Little guy checking out his present

Nan and Pop and the kiddos. 

Stephen, Becca, Maddie and Cooper on Christmas evening

The youngest littles

The Annual Lee Family Holiday Song!
We give Dad such good material to work with every year--ha!

LOVE this with my little nephew, Cooper.

Little guys playing together.

Getting down on the farm.

Roaming

Kisses!

Saying "good-bye." :(

This year Don and Nancy completely refinished their basement. This was no small project! It was completely packed with storage and they started the project around Thanksgiving. It was amazing that it was about 95% completed in time for us to use. Don and Nancy were motivated by the fact that they would have not one, but TWO families staying with them over Christmas. Normally, it's just Jen and Ed coming in from out of town for a visit since we lived locally. This year, EVERYONE was out of town! The basement was quite spacious with a huge play area and a new bedroom and bathroom. The project put a lot of stress on Jeremy's parents at an already busy time of year. We were so thankful that they wanted to do this so everyone would be comfortable during our time together.

Jeremy and I planned ahead for several outings with friends--a date night with work friends in Louisville, a play date and lunch with Misty and her daughter, a breakfast with PT friends in Bowling Green, a lunch date with Eric and Misty, and of course lots of time with both of our immediate families. Still, there were several folks we were sad to miss on this trip. It is hard to find the right balance of rest, family time, friends time, personal time, etc. I was thankful for the "Date Night" with "Mr. Claus" at Toys R Us and a little appetizer/drinks afterwards. We get so little time out just the two of us since we moved. I really enjoyed the outing with Jeremy's parents and Emily to see the Nutcracker. She LOVED it and it was fun to enjoy this with our big girl and Dinkney and Poppy. (I especially love going for FREE--one of Poppy's perks with being a floor manager at the Kentucky Center.) I was thankful for opportunity to see extended family in Bowling Green on both sides of the family. 

Post-nap 'dos. LOVE!

Love the sleepy girls expressions and Caleb is just like, "What's up?"

Caleb cracks me up!

Poppy and Em 

Family picture at Reiss Christmas

Sis shares her new Raggedy Ann Doll with Caleb
(Thanks for the throw-back gift, Dinkney!)

Dinkney helping little Caleb with a big gift.

Ed, Jen, and Elizabeth at Reiss Christmas.
We were SO happy to have Ed with us this year since he was serving with the Army last year.

Dinkney and Poppy opening up a special gift from us.

Daddy and Caleb checking out a new book. 

After Christmas, Caleb caught a cold that led to an infection. We had several rough nights when he would not sleep unless we brought him to bed with us and held him. It was the first time Caleb had been sick in months and of course it had to be when we were on vacation. Luckily, we were able to see our old pediatrician before flying back. Other than Caleb's little illness, our Christmas vacation was fabulous! It had been nearly five months since we had seen our families (other than Mom during her brief trip to SF) so we were homesick. We decided not to take Emily back to see our old house. I drove by there one day while running an errand in the neighborhood. I cried and cried. I was pretty pitiful. :( It just represents the closing of a chapter in our lives that was so very sweet.

We are looking forward to hosting our parents at our home in California this spring!

Thanksgiving 2013--Still playing catch up

We celebrated Thanksgiving this year with the Yeiser family in San Carlos, CA (south of SF on the peninsula). Jeremy met David in Louisville awhile ago since they work in a similar profession. We got connected with them since they had just moved to CA about a year before us. Prior to Elizabeth and David's invitation to spend the day with them, I had no idea what we would do for Thanksgiving. It didn't make much sense to cook a huge meal for just the four of us, especially since my kids wouldn't even eat that much. However, I wanted to make the day special so we wouldn't be too sad about not being home during our first major holiday away. We debated about taking a small trip to take advantage of the four day weekend, but neither Jeremy nor I felt much like planning a trip or spending the money to get away. (We had just bought our airline tickets for KY.) We also wanted to get our house Christmas ready on Thanksgiving weekend since we would only have a little over two weeks to enjoy it before we flew back home to KY. So, it was wonderful when Elizabeth and David extended an invitation for dinner! Elizabeth and I worked together on the menu and we had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal.

We didn't take very many photos that day because we spent the day playing, eating and socializing, but here's a few!

Prepping in the kitchen

David and Emmy did many activities together.
Here they are playing with sidewalk chalk.

A little outdoor play for the littles.

Winding down the evening with wine and conversation. Sorry this is so blurry. I'm not the photographer of the family.

David and Elizabeth moved back to KY in December. He was given an opportunity to work remotely for his CA employer. They are expecting the second born really soon. We are thankful that they will be reunited with family in KY, but we will definitely miss not having them in CA!

15 mon. Caleb

Our sweet baby boy turned 15 months on December 23rd, my birthday. He looked adorable, but you know what? I could barely get a photo of that stinker with me on my birthday to save my life! He was too busy being well...15 months! You know, all squirmy and "put me down mom! I've got cars to play with!"

It's been awhile since I wrote a post about our little guy. He's certainly changed a lot since his birthday! I'm loving this stage SO much.

Fine/Gross Motor:

~Runs! His little legs move so fast! He's running all over the playground and uneven surfaces. He likes to go up and down curb steps. Maybe he's practicing gong up/downstairs like a "big boy."

~Climbs! He's really good at ascending stairs, usually by crawling up them, but he's also able to walk up them if he has a rail or someone's hand to hold. He's able to go downstairs, but not safely of course. He tends to sit on his bottom and and "bump" down one at a time.

~Uses a fork/spoon (when allowed by mama--it is so messy that we don't let him practice at every meal!)

~Uses those little hands to do all types of play with his toys and blocks. He especially likes to hold smallish toys in his tiny fist.

~Throws and kicks balls, occasionally able to catch it when thrown to him. Enjoys hitting balloons back and forth and catching them in the air.

We scheduled a cut with Ms. Val while we were in KY. We miss her!

Comprehension and Expression:

~This may be my favorite part of the 1-2 year development. I love seeing his understanding grow. Even if he has few words he speaks, he understands so many now. It is awesome to see him follow through with instructions, nod yes/no appropriately, etc. I haven't bothered with teaching him baby sign language because he is easily able to communicate what he wants through pointing and gestures. For example, when he gets restless in his high chair, I ask him, "Are you all done? Do you want down?" He lifts both arms up in the air and looks up at me for me to get him down. Sometimes, he nods his head in agreement and says, "YES!"

~Spoken words include "mama", "dada," "bird," "car," "go," "thank you," "yes," "no," "ball," "dog," "Emma," "Pop," "bubble," "outside," "this," "cheese," "apple," "down," and "uh oh!" I'm sure I'm forgetting something. He says a lot these days. He repeats lots and lots of our words and small phrases when we ask him to "Say _____."   Of course many of his words are still babyish and aren't pronounced perfectly. "Thank you" is all garbled, but there is no doubt what he's saying and he uses it appropriately--like after we give him food. :) His first sentence was "It's a car." 

Favorite Toys:

~Our boy LOVES, LOVES, LOVES balls and cars. He is completely obsessed with balls. I keep several in the back hatch of the car so when I open it to get out the stroller, he goes crazy, saying "Ball! Ball! Ball!" If we are at the playground and I forget to bring a ball, he zones in on one as soon as we get there. Doesn't matter if there are big boys on the basketball court or tossing football in the grass or kicking soccer balls--whatever. He goes to the ball and will try to take it or be a part of the game. I didn't think he would like small hot wheels type cars so soon, but oh he does!

~Caleb also enjoys cuddling with his lovey, cuddling with other stuffed animals, playing at Emily's Calico Critters table (although he mostly plays with the cars, motorcycle and horse!) and reading books. When he's in the right mood, he would let me read 10 books in a row! He loves to pick them out from his shelf, bring them to me, and cuddle up in my lap. Of course I love it and can't get enough of his sweetness.

Hanging out with our little cousins, Madelyn and Cooper

Cheesy grin that mama loves

Doll baby

Pure Sweetness:

~It's not just girls that are "sugar and spice and everything nice." Caleb is just as sweet as he can be at this age. He likes to play a game with Jeremy and me where he runs back and forth between us giving us hugs. He pretty much gives me a hug and kiss any time I ask for one. If Jeremy and I are being affectionate and hugging one another, he runs up to our legs and joins in on the family hugs. He will even let me hold him and rock him. I can't believe it! He's often pretty squirmy about me holding him when he is intent on doing something else, but at nap time and bedtimes, he allows it--especially if I give him the lovey to clutch while I snuggle him under covers.

~He has the sweetest temperament. He is quick to laugh and smile. He loves to dance. Any of the toys that make music, get used a lot. He happily dances to the tune.

~I love how he says my name. "Mama." He doesn't use it all the time, but he sure knows how to call me when he needs me or wants me. It is the sweetest sound.

First Flights:

Caleb's first flight was when we left KY for San Francisco. He was 10 months old. He did especially well on that trip because we took his car seat on the plane with us since Twitter bought everyone a ticket. He slept better in the car seat and it was nice to have the extra space. He only fussed for a few minutes when he was sleepy and trying to settle for a nap. We did everything we could to keep him entertained and happy.

Our flights home for Christmas were harder. At fifteen months, he's used to being more mobile and walking. Also, we didn't splurge on an extra ticket for Caleb since he could still travel for free as a lap baby. We managed pretty well and he did fine, but it was hard and stressful at times. Luckily, he did nap for an hour or so on both flights. He could have napped longer if I could hold him more still. Have you ever tried to hold a sleeping baby for that long and not squirm? It is really hard. My frequent readjustments finally woke him.

Eating Habits:

Caleb has gotten much pickier, I am sad to say. He still loves cheese, fruits, yogurt, bread, rice and a few vegetables. He pretty much eats any of the squeeze pouches of fruit/veggie purees that I give him. However, he barely eats any meats (just fish sticks and occasionally small pieces of ground turkey/hamburger). We offer and offer and he picks up the tiniest of pieces and throws them off his high chair tray. He won't eat eggs either, unlike Emily who loves them. I'm going to have to try to "hide" his meat in his grilled cheese sandwiches or puree it? I'm not sure what to do, but it is frustrating that he will no longer eat some of the foods he once liked. He drinks a couple of cups of whole milk in a sippy cup each day. He is able to hold his cup himself, but sometimes needs help tipping it up when it is less than half full. I have almost completely weaned him. He nurses once at night at bedtime. It is a special rock and cuddle time for us. I plan to wean completely by 18 months or earlier, but have decided that since it brings us both contentment (and a healthy dose of mom's immunity), there was no need to stop the day he turned one! I also wanted to get him through the winter months so maybe we could prevent a few illnesses.

Their expressions crack me up! Love our cousin, Elizabeth!

 And a note for Caleb,

We were so happy to celebrate Christmas with our families and share your 15 month cuteness with them! You have already traveled more than I ever did in sixteen years! Hopefully our flights home will get easier in time. We love watching you grow in your understanding and hear what you will say next. I love that you still let me cuddle and rock you some at night.

I have lost count of how many haircuts you have had now. Five? Six? Who knows. You have a head FULL of dark hair and it grows incredibly fast.

I'm still addicted to your super soft baby cheeks, long eyelashes, and sweet hugs and kisses. You are such a joy to us all and we LOVE you so very much. Happy 15 months, little buddy.

Love,

Mommy.