I felt the need to post today. Josiah keeps growing up and leaning new things and I know that I need to be writing it down...this blog is my way of doing that. I am finding it ever so important to cherish all the little things that bring me such joy in life. Last blog, I wrote about the impact Dax Locke has made on my family...today that baby is dancing with Jesus. I can't explain the sorrow I have felt for that ailing little boy and for his beautiful, doting family. I would read his mommy's blogs and immediately put myself in her shoes. I internalized everything that she wrote and cried for that baby every day. I can't begin to explain why this happened or how a child could endure such pain. I am 100% follower of Jesus Christ and love him with my heart, yet I can't wrap myself around why this happens. I tell you what I do know... I know that He gave the world a tiny piece of heaven through Dax Locke. That little boy and his parents touched hearts around the world. He made people re-evaulate their lives. I am certainly one of those people. I often wondered why my family had to endure the pain of having a daughter/sister walk out on us or watching my dad endure the pain of being an outcast by his family simply because he didn't worship a church. It was heart-breaking to me and I would ask "why" constantly...enter... baby Dax. When I began to read Dax's story several months ago, I felt God. I began to realize that I had so many important things in my life. I didn't need to focus on my anger/bitterness that I felt every time I saw an old pic of my sister or in hearing her name mentioned. I kept thinking that I needed to cherish every moment with the ones that LOVE me. I also realized that I need to pray for the ability to forgive and move on to the great things in my life and focus on those things. By nature, I am a very loving person and want everyone to get along, but I also know that I am not always in control of that. I still pray that my sister's heart, along with my dad's family, will change and they will be open to this love that I speak of in my blog. I cry for them all the time and pray that their hard hearts will melt into something soft and pliable. Until then, I am going to cherish the moments with those that love me most. I am blessed to have an amazing hubs, son, mom and dad, in-laws, and some of the best friends in the whole world! (Amy, you are probably the only friend that reads this, so yes, I am talking about you -Muah!)

Anyway, this is what I decided to do today in my effort to "cherish every moment" as Dax's mommy would say. I decided to write down some of the things that Josiah does that make my heart melt...here we go:

The way he sleeps on all fours during nap time
The way he runs through our house screaming, "mama, mama!"
The way he runs his blankie through his hands until he finds a corner to hold
The way he breathes when he sleeps
The way he gets concerned when I cry
The way he squeezes my neck when he gives my a tight hug
The way he puckers up when I say, "give me a kiss"
The way he mimics my words
They way he folds his little hands when we pray
The way he claps for whomever said the prayer (he is a little charismatic)
The way he dances when music comes on
The way he pretend fights with daddy
The way he shares everything with me
The way he shares everything with others
The way he throws all of his bath time toys into the tub when I say "Bathtime"
The way he cuddles when we read together
The way he raises his chubby little hands when he has worship time with mommy
The way he sheds his socks five minutes after putting them on
The way he plays with his little cousin Elijah and his friend Addison
The way he asks for a cookie or vitamin
The way he moves his mouth to sing, but nothing comes out
The way he pats my back when he is crying and upset
The way his hands and feet get moving when he is excited to get in the car and go somewhere
The way he runs to me after nursery
The way he puts food into my mouth
The way he says "kitty" LOL
The way he loves his grandparents
The way he loves his aunts and uncles
The way he says "cool, dude"
The way he looks in jammies that are just a tad bit too small for him-ha!
The way he loves his daddy
They way he grins
The way he smiles
The way he loves me and his entire family


There are so many more "ways" that this child makes me cherish, but this blog would stretch to the heavens if I wrote them all! I encourage all of you to do this...not just for a child, but for whatever you hold dear in your life!!!! I love you all so much and thank you for reading this blog!!! Hopefully, I will write again soon!

Has it really been four months since my last blog??? Well, Josiah will be entering college next week...not really, but it seems like it!!! He is the most active little boy that I have ever seen! You have to keep in mind that I am with him all the time; so to me, he is definitely the most active boy I HAVE SEEN! ;) Anyway, he is building his vocabulary immensely! He uses phrases like, "I don't know," "Up mama," "Call Nana"...Yes, I am serious, he will hand me the phone and say, "Call Nana." He likes to hear the voices on the other end of the phone. He laughs and giggles quietly and never says anything back to the person talking to him! It can be frustrating because they want to hear his cute little voice so badly. Other words we are learning include the following: train, cow, sheep, moon (pronounced moan), kitty (unfortunately pronounced titty), and many more that I can't even remember. He calls my dad and mom "nana" and "pawpaw." He calls Seth's dad "Pa" instead of "Pap" and he calls Seth's mom "Momo" instead of Mimi. Last night, Momo and Pa ( :) )came for a visit and as they were pulling out of the driveway, he was waving violently and screaming "bye momo, bye pa." It is super cute. Another thing that he started doing recently is to carry a picture around of my dad holding him as a teeny tiny baby...he gets angry when you take it away!!! He found it in his mama's scrapbooking pile! The child LOVES pictures! We received the Quin family Christmas card today and he is having a hayday with it! He points out Momo and Pa, and he says "maw" for Aunt Molly, and he can point out cousin "lijah" too.. He can point the rest of the family out when I show him everyone.

J is like a little sponge, taking in everything around him. That is good for the most part, until he hangs around our friend Greg, known as "Uncle Hat." Greg teaches him words like "ocean" and such...if only it came out sounding like ocean. Seth and I will look at each other when he uses that word and in panic say, "what did he just say?"

Another thing that J and I work on together when we are at home are his colors. Some days he nails them and other days, he does not! I try to lay out all of his toy balls that are different colors. I then proceed to ask him for the different colors of balls and he brings that particuliar color to me. He likes that game! He is also still a fan of reading. The books of choice right now are "Trains," (thanks Aunt Julie), "The Cow Says Moo," (thanks Momo) and "Goodnight Moon" (thanks me). Oh, and I am going to buy him "Little Einstein" videos now. We watch it on Disney in the mornings and I think he is ready to upgrade from "Baby Einstein" to this one...so are mommy and daddy...VERY READY!!!!!!

We had a good Thanksgiving with both families! I always tell Seth how blessed we are to have TWO families that we get along with so well!!!! My in-laws treat me like a daughter/sister and my parents treat Seth as a son!!! I will say that this Thanksgiving has been a time for me to reflect on so much! I have been following the story of baby Dax. He is from Washington, IL and has leukemia. He is fighting for his life the very moment that I write this. I follow his mom's blogs daily. I get terribly emotional when I read this blog. I sometimes will sit by myself and cry for awhile. You see, he is close to J's age and I put myself in that mommy's shoes. She is such a great mom and she has made me realize what I take for granted in my life. Sometimes, we get caught up in the silly drama of our lives...may it be with family or friends or whatever else. I ,myself, struggle with problems with my sister and have prayed for reconciliation for years. This Dax story has made me realize that there are far worse things in this life. He is a baby fighting for his life and enduring pain that no child should have to bear. I have realized that I shouldn't whine over things that I have no control over. Instead, I should be thankful for what God has given me this year. I pray for Dax Locke and his family several times a day. My heart is full every time I read the latest about him. I am crying right now as I revisit the thought of his mommy saying that she doesn't have much time left with her baby, but she memorizes every inch of him and kisses him over and over again. I pray that God will help me to get rid of my anger and bitterness toward others and focus on the blessings that He has bestowed on our family! You never know what lies ahead...so for now I am doing what Julie Locke writes at the end of her blogs...CHERISHING EVERY MOMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. A special thank-you to one of my besties, Hilary Melick, for taking this beautiful shot of my son! I love you Hil!