Stuffed!

I am finally getting to writing a run down of our first Thanksgiving. It turned out so beautifully. You know I love cooking, so I did have fun making the menu and trying a few new things along with the standards.

Our Menu

Turkey

Homemade bread stuffing

Fresh Cranberry-Ginger sauce

Candied Sweet Potatoes

Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Gravy

Sauteed Spinach topped with goat cheese

Brussel Sprouts sautteed in pancetta

Fresh Green Casserole

Assorted rolls and breads

Dutch Apple Pie

Pecan Pie

Pumpkin Roll

There aren't alot of pictures because it is really hard to cook dinner, feed a 2 month old, and take pictures. I should have put Cody in charge of the camera!

The bird right from the oven.

My table! I used my great grandmother's china for the first time and my silver. It was fun to use that stuff, I never get fancy. I thought the table looked really pretty. I even had matching glasses. This is big. If you know me at all you know what a klutz I am can be and my glassware is all mismatched from me breaking it.

Grandpa and Annarose

Uncle Mike, Aunt Christy, and the kids

They came all the way from San Diego to spend the holiday with us and be here for Annarose's baptism that followed up on Saturday. It was so great to have them here! It was Christy's first trip to the east coast. I think she was freezing the whole time.

Many nights ended with Grandpa snuggling Miss Sweet Potato. She really loves her Grandpa.It was a really great weekend. We ate and drank and ate some more.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all! I am cooking and hosting my first Thanksgiving down here in the ole' South. We have got loads of company, Sam, Margie, Christy, Mike, Taylor... it is a full house, everyone under one roof.

The turkey is in the oven, the sides are all prepped, the kids are napping, the guests are watching football and here I am trying to occupy my time and mind so that I don't have to think about how much I am missing my Dad. I thought myself ready to take on this upcoming season without him, knowing it would be hard and it is. I will forever have this imagine in my head:

I know that I have oodles to be thankful for, too many things to count or even mention. But, it is kind of clouded and watered down after the last few months. It honestly is so difficult to engage my whole heart in all of these festivities, which I know my father would not want me to dwell in my pain... so here goes, this is what I am thankful for:

1. First, my dear sweet husband. What a freaking rock! I would not have survived this year without his support, patience, and unimaginable love for me and my family. I sometimes forget that he too lost a very important and close person to him, and is also healing. But, like a good spouse often does, he has put me first way to many times.

2. My beautiful children. Sam and Annarose has been the light of my year. I could go on and on about my deep love for these to wonders, but who wants to read that!

3. My family. All of them, from my mother in law Margie for dropping everything at a moments notice and coming to our rescue last August... to my sister in law Holly for taking care of Sam while I went to my family during crises... to my other sister in law Karen (and her family) for making sure I was eating and resting when I couldn't take care of myself. My mother for being the strongest woman alive and keeping us afloat when we all felt like we were drowning and being my best friend. My brothers. My aunts and uncles and cousins. My extended family... everyone showing such love this year, God bless you.

4. My friends. Where would I be without them, they make me laugh, they make me cry, they make life worth it sometimes.

5. I am thankful for everyday I have with my loved ones. I will never take another day for granted. And, with that, I am going to go spend some time with my company.

I hope everyone enjoys their Thanksgiving.

Race Car Drivers

Cody took big Sam for his 60th Birthday surprise. They did the Richard Petty Race Experience at the Charlotte Speedway on Sunday morning. The guys got to drive their very own car, it was a dream come true for the both of them. I have to admit, it was pretty darn cool.

First Sam went, and then Cody went. They reached speeds of 140 mph and probably more at times, 140 was the average. They got to do 6 laps.

In their jump suits ready to GO!Big Sam and Little SamSam is in the black car racing, they were going about 140mph.Cody's up!

I once asked Cody if he wasn't a dentist, what does he think he'd rather be. In all seriousness, he answered me "a race car driver". Well there you go.

Annarose is 2 months

Having 2 children makes posting hard! I am finally getting these pictures up of Annarose. Life at Casa de Fielden is really settling in, Sam is adjusting to all the big changes and so are we... Annarose is so mellow she is just along for the ride.

She had her two month appointment last week and she weighed in at 8lbs 8oz. and 21.5 inches long. I can't wait for her to fit in her 0-3 clothes, she has so much cute stuff! The pediatrician is very happy with her growth and progress and was surprised she and I did it all on breast milk. She is eating about 8 times a day, and is getting very proficient. I am only down nursing typically 10 minutes or so. She is for the most part a great little sleeper too. I am up two-three times a night if you count the 6am feeding. She also got her first round of vaccines, three sticks to the leg. She was very sore, but didn't have any reactions.
She loves tubby time!And is holding her head up really well!
We have got a busy week ahead of us, Margie and Sam are coming out for a week and staying through till Thanksgiving. I have lots of planning to do because I am cooking my first Thanksgiving dinner! I am excited and nervous... I need to start planning my menu. It is dinner for 8, plus Sam.

We had pictures taken of Annarose last week too, the photographer holds a contest for cutest kids and if you go to the website and vote, we might win a $200 dollar credit. So please go vote! Click on the contest button at the bottom of his homepage, there is a little slide show. Sam and Annarose are the 6th or 7th tile.

Busy month

First, Happy Veterans Day to all those who bless us with their service past and present... and a special shout out to my brothers Dennis and Tristan... and most especially my Dad with his 28 years of honorable service. I love you and miss you everyday.
What have we been up to so far this month? Well, it has been just plain busy!

We got a visit from some of my family this past weekend. My Aunt Marti and Uncle Dick came down to celebrate her birthday and we all attended the baptism of my cousin's baby Noah. This was really fun. We got to hang out with alot of our South Carolina cousins too and it was super mellow, which is unusual. Our family gatherings tend to be for weddings and funerals packed into a few hours, so Holly was kind enough to host everyone Saturday night for some dinner and drinks. It was wonderful.

I have been fighting a nasty cold, and unfortunately little girl picked it up. She is congested and is all snorty and sneezy. Hopefully it goes as quick as it comes, she has been very sleepy. I am keeping close watch on her. We have a doctor's appointment on Thursday for her two month well visit. I hate the thought of giving her shots when she already feels cruddy.

More Pics from Halloween

Here is Sam with his class for the Halloween parade. He took charge and led his class, it was pretty darn cute watching him strut and do his little Batman dance. He turned to me the other day, while checking his Bat-self out and asked, "Mom, do I look cool?"

"Yes you do honey, yes you do."

Sam's class.

The lady bug is Dixie, she wants to marry Sam. She tells him everyday.

The very lucky little Batman got to trick or treat twice this year, up at Nana's. They don't trick or treat if Halloween falls in the weekend on Halloween day, they schedule it for the Thursday before hand. Strange, I know.

Annarose and Janey played very nice together, their little bald heads matched nicely too.

Nana with her girls.

Annarose gave Uncle TJ lots of smiles and napped with him all weekend.

Lunch date at Red Robin, Nana and Sam split a vanilla milkshake, both their favorite.

The kids were little angels in the car for me on my first solo trip up to PA. It was a fast trip, and as always I wish we could stay longer. We did get to spend all day with Damien's family and Tristan came up too. So now, everyone on my side has met Annarose.

I wish I could say that everything is getting easier for us, but we are all still missing my Dad with much heartbreak. All of us are dealing in our own way, but on the whole we have a big hole in our family. It has made us stronger than I ever thought possible, even though at times we probably feel weakened. If that makes any sense. My Aunt Rosemarie sent me this little daily devotional to read, today's reading was so poignant. It was about our responses to the crosses we carry in life, our burdens and trials. I found comfort in the ending prayer:

"Today Lord, for love of you, I want to bear my cross well."

Nough said.

Happy Halloween!

More pictures to follow of school parades, impromptu trip to PA and spooky parties!

Annarose is beginning to smile, real smiles... not gas smiles. She is also cooing, which is pretty darn cute.

Annual Blue Ridge Trip

Every year we head to the mountains to check out the colors and views of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Last weekend we ventured out to see how Annarose would do on a car trip, she was an angel of course. We really enjoyed our family day, although for the second year in a row the leaves were pretty dull. We have had a lot of droughts and it makes for a dried out fall. The day was beautiful though, gorgeous, blue clear skies.

Annarose liked her pack carrier, she enjoyed being snuggled with Daddy.
We stopped at a park and did a walkabout and let Sam explore. He ran, he climbed and he ran some more. There were these beautiful wheat fields everywhere, the pictures do not do it justice.



This lodge is in the park, and it had some vacancies. We had no idea it was there, and had tried to get a hotel for the night but had no luck. Next year, we are going to try and get a room. It is pretty rustic, no TV or telephones... but it sounds so relaxing to me. There is a porch that wraps the whole building and a stone patio with fire pit and view in the center of the building.
On Sunday, we headed to the pumpkin patch at the Farmer's Market to get our Halloween pumpkins. Sam was very excited and picked out one for each of us. Annarose was not impressed.

Today will be two months since we buried my dad.

Since August 12th, there isn't an hour that goes by that I don't think about him. I miss him.

Everyone tells me that the "anniversaries" will be the toughest, our first birthday without him, Christmas, and such... but sometimes it is just the mornings I wake up and want to call him that seem to hardest. The times when I have to share a silly story about Sam. He liked to answer the phone ask my mom which number was on the phone #1, #2, #3 or #4. I was #3. It was a game they played.

I had my first dream about my dad since he died. It was very real, and vivid. I can still remember the whole conversation. The best part was that it took place in his airplane and we were flying. It made me miss him more, but it allowed me to watch a few home movies. I haven't been able to watch the movies with him in it till a few days ago.

Today is a hard day.

Some milestones...

Finally! FINALLY! We are having some sweet, sweet success with the poopin' on the potty! I hope to not jinx myself, but for the last three days we have had poops on the potty with Sam. I can not express how absolutely ecstatic Cody and I are (particularly me). After a long eight months, I think we are finally on the right track. There has been many bribes, begs and tears from both Sam and me... but it looks like just a little bit of privacy and a good book was all he needed.

And, I weighed Annarose at Mommy and Me yesterday. At one month she is 7 lbs. 1 oz.

She has gained a perfect amount of weight. She is a healthy eater and sleeper. Let's hope this trend continues. She has her official checkup with the peditrician next Tuesday, so I will be able to get a proper weight, length and head circum check.

Annarose is One Month Old

Annarose is now one month old, I can hardly believe it. The time is going by fast! She is as sweet as ever, very snuggly and happy. I guess it is that second child thing, because AR just goes with the flow.

She is eating pretty good, it is hard to get on a real feeding schedule. She cluster feeds. She is much sleepier than Sam was, and I find that I have to wake her up most of the time in the day to get all her meals in, and she just falls asleep in her food. Then, around 6:00 pm she wakes up and she just can't get enough. We usually give her a bottle around 10ish along with whatever she takes at the breast, and she will sleep till to 2:30. I am getting decent sleep, as long as, she goes back to bed. Sometimes, when she wakes up she is really wakeful for up to and over an hour after she eats. That is torture.
Sam is still adoring her, and they have books and prayers each night with Daddy. He is still adjusting. There is still a fair amount of tantrums and mischief. He recently started getting out of bed to either help himself to toys or visit us in our bedroom or living room. I hope to get this little hiccup nipped soon. I am not a fan of the high maintenance child at bedtime.Bottle time! I am looking forward to her weight check on Wednesday. She seems so much fuller than Sam, it should be interesting. He was at 7lbs at one month. She doesn't seem to eat as much, but then again, I don't seem to have the trouble with milk supply this time.
Noah, Ruby and Annarose ***(Noah is my cousin Chris Andrew's new little boy. He was born at the end of July)
Annarose with her "sweetie-pie"

Sam's Homegirl

This is Lauren, Sam and her are "best friends". If your wondering about the wings, Sam is very secure in his manhood. Upon being invited to a 4 year old girls fairy birthday party, all guests donned fairy wings. Sam promptly corrected the other guests that his wings were "dragon wings".

Out of the Darkness Walk

My brother Dennis is walking this weekend in the "Out of the Darkness" walk for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. I would be honored if you would care to donate in my Dad's honor. No family should have to suffer like ours... awareness and education are the only way to stop this dreadful affliction.

I wish I could walk myself, but I am still restricted to no exercise while recovering from my

C-section.

Here is the link.

http://afsp.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&eventID=1173&participantID=145013

3 weeks old

Annarose continues to be our sweet little angel! She is an absolute breeze. Life is starting to resemble a bit of normalcy, Sam is adjusting and will probably really settle down once we are on our own in a few days. The last of our help with the Grandmas ends on Tuesday. I have been so blessed, it should be interesting to see how I cope with the two kid juggle.

Annarose takes her napping very seriously.
We went down to celebrate Joe's 3rd birthday, and Annarose was awake for the cake and singing. She already knows the importance of dessert.Bedtime ritual already includes Annarose being held during stories for special brother-sister snuggles.
Grandma and Annarose, love at first site.