Thanksgiving with the Baums

This marks the first Thanksgiving with baby James. I have not been feeling too well due to a cold or flu of some kind so that is a bit of a bummer. It’s that season. My mom, dad and Austin worked hard and made a delicious meal and let me rest. I’m so blessed with family and friends who take care of me. All in all, it was a good day and it was super fun watching James experience it all.

Taking a morning nap with daddy.

Watching the Macy’s Day Parade with Osa.

Playing with grandpa.

Reading William Bradford’s Thanksgiving Proclamation with Uncle Tony

Eating his first plate of Thanksgiving goodness. He gobbled it all up!

A special Thanksgiving treat of pumpkin pie. Of course he gobbled that up too!

A happy and full table. Perfection.

Life Is Good

Life has been so sweet these past few days. Here is why…

Austin rode in his first ever Tour de Tucson and we got to cheer him on. Super fun!

Cuddling on the couch and taking a nap with this sweet face.

My knee is getting better and better each day. I’m walking well without crutches and able to bend it more and more. Hooray!!!

I have been attempting to make paleo friendly desserts for my paleo eating husband. My first try was awful but since then I have made these brownie bites and coconut milk whip cream which are both fantastic. Woo hoo!

The sight of this… My husband playing Christmas carols while James chimes in when he feels there needs to be an extra note in there, while I sing along in the background. Melts my heart.

Plus THANKSGIVING IS THIS WEEK!!! I guess I sure do have a lot to be thankful for!!!

James Goes to Camp

Austin and I had the privilege of serving as a part of the Assignment Team for Young Life College Weekend in the beautiful pines of Williams, Arizona. With my bum knee and baby James we seriously were questioning how helpful we could really be, but Austin proved himself useful as always and I was able to keep James and myself out of trouble.

We were most excited because it was the first time James was able to experience the awesomeness of Young Life camp! He ate every second up! He loved all the attention from the hundreds of people telling him he is the cutest baby in the world. He gave out smiles constantly. He LOVED the crazy, loud atmosphere of club. He loved dancing to the music. Of course he would! He is so social and outgoing! I do not have a shy boy on my hands. I wonder where he gets it from : )

We loved our time in the fresh mountain air, having fun, serving alongside some amazing people and seeing Jesus in action. We are so blessed!

Enjoying the fresh mountain air.

Loving his first club!

I LOVE ENERGY AND ALL THINGS LOUD!!

First (of hopefully many) family camp photo.

8 Months

Baby James is 8 months old on this Election Day. He is getting bigger by the second. Current favorite things include: eating anything mommy and daddy are eating, petting the doggies, crawling around the house, playing with his babysitter who adores him, laughing at his daddy being funny, non-stop babbling and putting anything in his mouth that he can. He recently has had a piece of wicker, a piece of plastic and part of a book cover in his mouth. It is amazing how he is able to find things that we cannot see to shove in his mouth! We are watching him like a hawk these days!

He is still a joy and we fall in love with him more everyday!! We love you Jamesy baby!!!

Picking pumpkins

Hanging out with mommy.

Meeting cousin Silas for the first time : )

Those eyes!!!!

He LOVES hats, especially his daddy’s hats.

Big smiles!

Watch out he found the Masai stick.

Out of the fog…

I am now two weeks post surgery and feeling more like myself everyday. I did not think that I was in any sort of fog at the time, but now looking back the first week after surgery was quite a blur. Between coming out of the anesthesia and the percocet to offset the pain I was not myself. I really do not like taking heavy medications but the pain was quite intense and the medicine was very helpful for that. After getting off of the medication I was super emotional and  feeling crazy. SO SO SO many thanks to everyone that helped out taking care of James and I that first week!!!! I honestly have a hard time remembering who all was here and what all everyone did but I could not be more thankful for our great friends and family!!

What I did not realize was how much of an emotional roller coaster this all would be. It is difficult not being able care for yourself physically in ways that you always have been able to. Feeling like you are glued to a couch with no end in sight of when you will be able to function the same again. Not to mention the fact that I LOVE to exercise and it is my number one stress relief! I guess I’m going to have to figure something else out for these next few months. On top of that, I have a baby that is crawling and needs his mommy to be able to cuddle him, play with him and take care of his needs. I have felt helpless when I am not able to do things for him that I regularly can. Thankfully, this is getting better and I am able to do a lot more for James. However, it still is quite frustrating that he can move faster in his walker than I can right now. Even doing menial tasks such as dishes and laundry are way more exhausting and time consuming than ever. I could not be more grateful for a husband who is picking up the slack without complaint. He is a hero!!!

Each day I am getting better, and I am a lot more mobile on my crutches now which is great. (A major bonus will be my ripped arms after all of this crutching around.) Trying to focus on what I can do now, and not what I cannot do. Thankful that I live in a place where getting this surgery is even an option, so that I do not have to limp for the rest of my life. Thankful for supportive friends and family. Thankful for a baby who’s smile makes it all worth it. Thankful for the countless blessings in my life. To Him be the Glory!

Mama Bear, Papa Bear and Baby Bear

Austin and I decided to be mama bear, papa bear and baby bear when we were pregnant and we followed through. Baby bear James was a hit!

We had our first Halloween in our new neighborhood, and it was fantastic! We had over 2,000 trick-or-treaters. No joke! It was nuts!!! We barely had enough candy but my parents helped stock out pile as we were warned at the amount of kids that would come through.

We actually ended up setting up in the drive way and hung out with our friends taking turns giving out candy. We made some chili and corn bread to keep ourselves warm. All in all it was a great night!!