Moving right along!

Sam was baptized yesterday at St. Dominic Church by Deacon Capaci. Despite Jasper's snoring throughout the entire ceremony, and Cristi Jo and Nannan being stuck in traffic, it was a perfectly happy and intimate service. Big thanks to Aimee for filling in since Cristi couldn't be there. Deacon "Boo" baptized Jasper a few years ago too. He does such a great job at making everyone feel comfortable. He lets the kids walk and talk during the service. He didn't even seem too bothered when Nanny's phone rang... and she answered it. LOL. He asks the right questions, like, "Jonathan, what do you want for your godchild?" and, "Grandparents, what advice do you have for Jeremy and Brigette?" He just made it so meaningful and special for us. He was also so kind as to give a special blessing for Mike and Joy, which had us all in tears. Afterward, we celebrated Sam's first sacrament at our house with plenty of food and Mrs. Cindy's SoCo punch. It was a great day. Just another reminder how lucky we are to be surrounded by such wonderful family and friends. I used to constantly worry about how we we were going to raise our kids in today's society. And don't get me wrong; I know that between the internet and TV alone, it won't be easy. But as long as we continue to surround them with the good people in our lives, like our parents, our extended family, their godparents that we so carefully selected, and the friends we've made and kept, they'll at least have the guidance to make better choices along the way. And when they don't, they'll know who to go to when they don't feel like they can come to us. We're both happy and blessed to have the help.

  Aside from the christening, there is still plenty going on. Joy and Mike will be staying with us a little longer, and we're happy to have them here, especially Jasper! He basically looks at PawPaw as a gigantic toy he gets to climb on and play with. Grammie has been extra helpful with Sam too. They're in the process of trying to sort through what can be salvaged and figuring out how much was lost in the fire. But as I've mentioned to a lot of people, they are in pretty good spirits. I think that grandchildren are the sole reason for that. And believe it or not, so far, we aren't driving each other crazy!

Jasper will be two and a half in February. He's still an amazing big brother. I'm pleasantly surprised at how much he likes Sam and how nice he is toward him. When Sammy starts to cry, Jasper will say, "Don't cry. It's OK Sammy." Melts my heart. In fact, he has been saying some really sweet things on his own that make us so proud. The other day, as we dropped him off at daycare, I had to call Mom because I was in tears. I told him, "Have a good day Pumpkin! He happily responded, "Have a good day Mommy!" And when he wants to sit on my lap at the kitchen table, he says, "I wanna hold you." At night, as we're tucking him in, he has told both of us, "I wanna lay by you." Now, he's no angel. We still use time out a lot, and count to "3" more often than we should, but he really knows how to turn on the charm and make us smile. 

Speaking of smiling, Sammy has perfected the art of smiling. At about six weeks old, he was able to interact with us more, bringing on plenty of smiles, especially at a time we all needed them most. And he hasn't stopped. He'll be two months old tomorrow, and I'm happy to report that he's sleeping really well (thanks to the miracle known as "rice cereal"). He starts daycare at Metairie Ridge (with Jasper) tomorrow. I know Granny will be a little sad not getting to see him every day. I'll miss the smiley Sam pictures she sends.

In just a few weeks he'll be going to his first Mardi Gras parade. Having Jasper with us made it easy to catch plenty. I mean, the kid is freaking adorable. But now that we have both Jasper AND Sam, we'll be unstoppable! I anticipate stuffed animals flying in from every direction. Not to mention several crawfish bags full of toys and trinkets from Grammie in Iris, and PawPaw, Uncle Neil and Daddy all in Druids. Looking forward to some fun parades and warmer weather. Thanks, as always for catching up with us!