Serenity

As I sit here and type this, my daughter decided to climb in my lap and snuggle. I do love these moments. I admit, I take them for granted. With the addition of a third child on the way, I know there will be many more moments like this, so I tend to not look at it for what it truly is.... In all honesty, I am not really sure *exactly* all of the emotions these moments hold. There is joy, and happiness, contentment, love, and yes, even a little annoyance (that she keeps getting in the way of my typing, and wanting to me to look at her and to rub noses. It's cute, but it's hard to get much done) but I think by far, the largest feeling is serenity.
Dictionary.com defines serenity as:
se·ren·i·ty /səˈrɛnɪti/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[suh-ren-i-tee] –noun, plural

1.	the state or quality of being serene, calm, or tranquil; sereneness.

—Synonyms 1. composure, calm, peacefulness, peace.

Most of these moments spent snuggling with my kids are just that, peaceful, calm and tranquil. I love those moments, where there are no other distractions, and I can focus on my children. It's usually in those times I realize how much they have grown, and matured. I think that is because we are on the go so much, that I do not see those things until I am in a much less distracted state. I love those moments.
I am hoping with this new baby, I will have learned to appreciate those moments, and not just assume there will be lots of others. I know for a fact, that these moments are all to fleeting. For the first time in a long time, my son fell asleep in my lap at bed time last night. I had all but forgotten what that was like, as my kids are pretty good sleepers and do not require much to go sleep. It was serene. Peaceful. I cherish that, as my son, just shy of age 3, does not come and cuddle all that often any more (way to much energy for that). I realize that I miss that.
So even though there is that slight annoyance at having to retype the same sentence 3 times, because my daughter keeps wanting me to rub noses... I will cherish this moment. We will never be able to get it back, no matter how many others there will be.
I want my kids to look back at their childhood, on moments like this, and think "It's all good." I know I will.

Happy new year!

Well 2007 is finally here. It's hard to believe another year has come and gone.
It's been a most interesting year for us here... with two toddlers running around interesting is putting it lightly. LOL
The kids have grown by leaps and bounds this year. Last January Lex was not even walking... now, there is no stopping her. Tim has come so far in his conversation, sometimes I forget that he is still so little.
This passed Christmas was great though. The kids really started to understand the idea of opening gifts. Tim was a pro. It did not take him long to start ripping into things and oohing and awing over the new toys. I made a mistake with Lex Christmas morning, I let her open a present I knew she would love (a stroller and a new baby doll) and it was game over for her after that. She did not want to open anything else. Tim was more than happy to finish opening her presents. It was pretty cute and funny.
Well, you all will be happy to know I did in fact get a new camera for Christmas, so there will be lots of new pics for me to post. Especially if Lex keeps looking as cute as she does in this pic.
Wow, she really is growing up so fast. She is so girly. She loves all the fufu, purple, girly stuff. Her favorite things now are her doll (and stroller), Barbie and her tea set. (Oh and she does love to antagonize her brother... but that is for another blog.)
Anyway, here is a what she looked like a year ago, and next to that is a recent pic.

Amazing.
Tim is a whole different ball ball game. He too, has changed much in the last year. His verbal skills are something to marvel at, and he is showing tremendous athletic ability already. He is all boy... his favorite things at the moment are a big box of dinos he got for Christmas, his basketball hoop, and anything that will allow him to dig up dirt. (Oh, and he also loves to antagonize his sister, but as I mentioned above that's for another time.)
Anyway, here is the comparison of him, the first pic being last year.
Well, 2007 promises to be another year full of love and adventure at our house. I will do my best to keep everyone posted (it's one of my resolutions), so I hope you will all check back regularly.
Hope your year is full of promise and love and many wonderful adventures.
P.S. Anyone is welcome to stop by for an adventure at our house... I can guarantee there will be many (Tim has a VERY active imagination). Please just call first, so I can at least move the dust around and stuff all the toys in the closets. Hehehe)