The Mayonaise Jar and Two Cups of Coffee

When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes."
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else---the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
"Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked.
It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Growing too fast...

Feels like just yesterday he was my little baby. Today was a pretty big deal both for me and Aidan. He went to nursery at church for the very first time. Rich and I have looked forward to this day since Maya was born. Church has been... difficult, to say the least. Aidan is so active and needs to constantly be running around and playing, so trying to keep him in one spot for 3 hours has proven to be impossible. In 2 weeks he will be 18 months old but we thought we would try it out a little early.
We went in with him and hung around for a little while and then left. We stood outside the door watching him through this tiny window in the door. He seemed to be doing ok so we left. About 5 minutes later I felt like I should check on him. I walked into the hall and immediately a lady said, "They are looking for you." So I ran to the nursery and Aidan had tears streaming down his cheeks :( The nursery leader said that he was just having a hard time. He was so happy to see me. I had hoped that he would love nursery right away but when he didn't I was actually really happy. It made me feel like he still loved and needed me. That was short lived. I took him back about 20 minutes later, during snack time, and he loved it. I peeked in on him about every 10 minutes and he was doing just fine.
As soon as church got out I rushed to the nursery to get him. He was playing and when he saw me he hopped up and came to me. He missed me. I'm so sad that he is growing up but at the same time it is making my life so much easier.

Mommy!

This is my mom. There are a million reasons why I love her, but here are just a few.

I love my mom because she has always been there to point me in the right direction. As you can see, I have always been a little stubborn and wanted to go my own way. But life has taught me that my mom is ALMOST always right.

I love my mom because I think she did an awesome job raising my brother, my sister and me all by herself! What a big job and personally I think she did it well. I think we all turned out ok. Right? A few things that I am grateful that my mom taught me are the importance of an education, family, good work ethic, accountability and self-reliance.
Look at what a hottie she is in this picture. Hubba, hubba!

I just really like this picture because I think she looks so cute in her adorable little dress. It's sad to admit but I don't really have a sense of fashion. My mom on the other hand has tons of cute clothes. She loves to find great deals on great clothes. Mom, you are so cute!

I love my mom because she is so much fun! She is playful and just lots of fun to be around. All of her grand babies love her because grandma always plays with them.

One of her favorite past-times is feeding her grand babies. She loves to sneak them food that sometimes they are not supposed to have, when you are not looking. No baby will ever go hungry around my mom.

If there is anything that is true about my mom it is that she LOVES her grand babies. Every single one of them is her best friend. My nephews live next door and are always asking if they can go to grandma's house and they beg to spend the night.

I think my mom is hilarious and the absolute best. She has a great sense of humor and these are just a few reasons why my mom is so great. I love you mommy!

Roly-Poly #2

I can't believe it. It seems like just yesterday I was writing about Aidan being a little roly-poly (click here) and here I am again, a short year later, writing about my little Maya. That's right! She rolls from her back to her belly! Here she is, looking beautiful as always.

Here we go...

She starts out on her back and then does this little, "Oh I'm just playing with my feet" thing.

Then, before you know it, she's off!

Look at that action shot!

Argh...struggling to make the final turn...

She did it!!!!!!
She is so proud of herself, but not nearly as proud as I am of her. I'm convinced that there has never been a more beautiful baby girl in the whole world. She makes me so happy. I can be having a horrible day and then she flashes me one of her smiles and I melt. She is always smiling and giggling and bringing so much happiness into our home and our hearts. I love you baby Maya!

The Rockwood Experience

Last week Rich and I decided to try out our new FREE FLIGHT BENEFITS (woohoo!!) and take a little trip out to Virginia to visit my awesome sister-in-law, Julie and her family. It was soooooo fun! Julie, her husband Jeffrey and their 3 boys+1 on the way, are stationed in Virginia. Jeffrey is a dentist for the Navy. We hadn't seen them in over a year so we were really looking forward to hanging out with them for a couple of days.

Aidan and Luke are just a couple of months apart. They had so much fun playing all day. When we got home we discovered that Luke had secretly been teaching Aidan a few of his tricks like how to climb up on a couch and how to open the dishwasher. Both of which make my job that much more exciting...thanks Lukey!

Luke was very aware of baby Maya the two days that we were there. He was attentive and loved looking at her. He even brought her a play bottle when she was crying. Such a smart boy. I think he is going to be a great big brother.

Jeffrey took us to the base so we could see ships like the one that he works on. It was a really cool experience. His ship wasn't there but I think he said this ship is half the size of his.

This is the new George Bush ship. It was very impressive to see this huge, new ship.

We really enjoyed our 2 days hanging out with Julie and Jeffrey and their boys. It was a trip that will not soon be forgotten. Thanks Julie!!!

Those that made the difference

You know the saying, "Give credit where credit is due"? Well, I'd like that do that. That's why I'm dedicating this post to those that made the difference. My heart swells with gratitude when I think of these people because of their service and love. Dr. Afshar is the doctor that delivered Aidan. I'm grateful that he acted quickly when Aidan was born and did what he needed to do get Aidan on the ventilator. I think of Dr. Afshar as the man that saved my little boys life. I know that if it weren't for his skills, Aidan would not have made it. He goes above and beyond his duties as a doctor. The 6 weeks that Aidan was in the hospital Dr. Afshar called me every week, without fail, to see how we were all doing. What an amazing, caring man. Thank you Dr. Afshar.

Dr. Allphin was Aidan's Ear, Nose and Throat doctor. I remember when Aidan was in the NICU we felt an instant sigh of relief when we were told that Dr. Allphin would be coming in to check on him. Dr. Allphin happens to be a member of our church and he is know to be one of the best ENT's in the area. What a blessing. He had a calming presence that made me feel like everything was going to be ok. He put the trach in but unfortunately couldn't be the one to take it out because of our move to Florida. To this day, he is the one we call when we need advice from someone we trust. I am so grateful for him, for all that he did and still does for us. Thank you Dr. Allphin!

And then there is Kelly Beckham. I can't say enough about Kelly. She was truly my light in the midst of what felt like never ending darkness. She was the therapist that helped me with Aidan's feedings every week. To me she really is an angel. Teaching Aidan to eat was the most difficult and frustrating thing I have ever had to do in my entire life. She taught me how to do that. I looked forward to going to see her each week because she gave me hope. I can't express how much I love this lady. I will never be able to repay her for what she has given me and Aidan. Thanks to her Aidan no longer has the feeding tube and is eating all textures and flavors. Eternally grateful for you Kelly. Thank you!!

Last but not least are the NICU angels. These are the ladies that took care of my little boy day and night for 6 weeks. I love them all and they will always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you NICU nurses!!

Quick rundown...

It's been such a long time since I've made a post and there is tons to catch up on. Here is a quick rundown of what has happened the past month. We flew out to Branson and stayed with my mom for 2 weeks. We had lots of fun visiting my aunt, relaxing at home, making yummy tamales with my mom and eating delicious Mexican meals, thanks mom! Yesterday she left for Mexico to visit my Grandpa and aunts and uncles so now it's Rich's parents turn to put up with us :) We've been having fun with them too. In fact we just got out of their awesome hot tub! It's been so much fun hanging out and watching movies for the past 3 weeks but the fun is coming to an end. We will be flying back home to Florida in a couple of days. What an incredible vacation it has been. There are so many things that I need to blog about but I'll have to do that in detail when I get home but here is a picture of Maya in her blessing dress. She was blessed by her daddy in the Marshfield high school on a karaoke machine. Their chapel is being rebuilt so they meet in the high school and the schools speaker system went out so now they use a karaoke machine. Fun times. She looked absolutely beautiful.

Me with my baby boy, opening presents on Christmas morning. He wasn't really into tearing open presents. Oh well. He got some pretty cool stuff.

This is my brother-in-law, Ryan. I know he's a stud but ladies he is taken. I'm kidding...about the teeth not about him being taken. He's in dental school in Kansas City and was showing off dentures that he made to fit his mouth...kinda.