Laura.NettlesFamily.Net

I haven't blogged in forever, and there is so much I want to blog about, like the snow we had and our youth Christmas party and the Christmas play last night at church. 

But, I'm sick.  I don't know what I have, but I can't breathe through my nose at all.  I have lots of sinus pressure between my eyes.  My throat is scratchy from having to constantly breathe through my mouth. 

So I'm not going to blog about any of that stuff yet.  Hopefully I feel better before Christmas, because it'll be here in 4 days!

I haven't posted any pictures in a while, so I thought I would put some up of the last few weeks.

Thanksgiving is a huge affair for my father-in-law.  It's his favorite holiday, so we all gather at the church fellowship hall to have lunch.  The food is always good, and it's nice to see relatives that you don't see any other time of the year (except for July 4.)  Here is Henry in his First Thanksgiving shirt, as this was his first Thanksgiving not being inside my belly!  :o)

I love Christmas!  I love the lights, the trees, the songs (especially the songs), the focus on Jesus (shouldn't that be year round?), and the Christmas cards with all the pictures of how everyone has changed over the year.  This is definitely my favorite time of year.

It's also a busy time of year.  There are cards to be addressed, decorations to be put up, cookies to be baked, parties and dinners to attend, presents to wrap, cantatas/plays/programs to watch (or be involved in), and so on and so on.  There's always something else you could be doing if y

Hello everyone!  A lot has happened in the over two weeks since I have last blogged.  So here goes the brief recap...

We left for KY on the 12th as planned.  As long as Henry is asleep, he rides well.  Once he is awake, he's bored out of his skull and wants to play.  Unfortunately, you can't do much playing in a car seat, and you have to be in the car seat.  This equaled a not so fun drive.  But we made it in one piece!  Our five hour trip took eight hours, but we got to see some beautiful country, especially in Virginia and Kentucky in t

...before we can go on vacation Thursday:

~wash Henry's cloth diapers
~dry Henry's cloth diapers
~fold Henry's cloth diapers
~wash dishes
~call the insurance company for John
~call the back doctor for John
~pack my clothes and toiletries
~pack Henry's clothes and toiletries
~take out the compost veggies
~have lunch with Justina
~tutor a former student
~pay two bills
~stop delivery of the newspaper

Did I mention most of this has to be done before 9am? 

I know we'll have fun; Henry and I are staying with

Do we have to enjoy the things God desires for us?  I mean, what if what God desires for us isn't what we thought we wanted?  What if His desire for us involves pain, suffering, heartache, or loss?  Do we have to enjoy it?  Does it make us ungrateful if we don't wake up and think, "Yay God!  I can't wait to be in pain again or suffering again today!"  Can we still be madly in love with God and not enjoy what we're going through, even if He ordained it?

Of all the jobs I've had, staying at home is not my favorite.  Please understand, I love Henry wi

Today was full of cakes and icing and more cakes and more icing!  I decided I want to make Henry's cake for his first birthday, and I need to practice beforehand so I have at least a small inkling of what I'm supposed to do.  After talking to my in-laws, we decided I would make my practice cake be the birthday cake for the birthday celebration they will be having tomorrow for three of their childrens' birthdays.  It was a busy day, but it was fun!  My mother-in-law knows how to ice a cake, that's for sure!  Her orange layer looked much better than my green layer.

I am tired.  Henry and I slept on the couch last night because he kept waking up to nurse, and it was just easier to sleep on the couch while he nursed and then switch sides when he woke back up hungry.  My couch is comfortable, don't get me wrong, but my bed is way more comfortable than the couch.  I don't know if Henry is trying to get some more teeth or what, but the fussiness and wanting to nurse alot at night has got to stop soon.  This mommy needs a continuous night's sleep...and quick!

On a bright note, I am getting our pictures tomorrow that we had made a

This morning, Henry was eating Cheerios in his high chair while John was getting ready to go get a hair cut and do a few errands in town (he doesn't work on Fridays...yay for us!)  John was in the bathroom shaving, and Henry could see that Daddy was in the bathroom.  He left the bathroom to go in the bedroom, and when he went out of sight, Henry waved his hand from front to back and said, "Ba Ba Ba."

Now, I could be reading WAY too much into that, but it looked to me like my little man waved bye to his daddy and tried to say "Bye Bye."  It could all have been a f

So yesterday was Henry's first real boo-boo.  We were in the living room, and Henry was trying to pull up on the end table.  He's done this many times before, so it isn't something new.  I was sitting in the chair beside the table talking to my mom and watching Henry.  As Henry is pulling up on the table, he loses his grip on the edge of the table and falls, face first into the leg of the table.  It was like one of those slow motion things, where you see it all happen but can't do anything about it. 

He gave a little cry, and I immediately picked him up