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O = Oh!

Doodlebug is happy most of the time and can usually be found with a smile on his face. But how sweet is this giggle? I'm thankful something as simple as "Oh" can make him squeal with delight.

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N = Naps

How have I not expressed gratitude for naps before?!

As I type this, The Lime should be napping but I can hear him playing with his cars.  That just means early bedtime tonight!  Mainly because he transforms into a different, not very nice, person when he doesn't nap.

Most of the time, I can get both boys to nap at the same time in the afternoon and it's glorious!  I try to get as much done as I can...or, I sit on the couch and watch my shows while eating something I shouldn't.

I wish someone would make me take a nap every day!  But in the meantime, I am SO grateful that my boys take naps and give me an opportunity to recharge for the second half of the day.

Bless his heart!  He fell asleep!

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M = Mustela

Am I the only mother that has a wish list for her babies?  For The Lime, I wished that he wouldn't be a spitter upper.  Guess what he was?  A master spitter upper.  For Doodlebug, I wished he wouldn't have cradle cap.  Sure enough, he was blessed with a whole head of soft, super blonde hair that covered up horrendous cradle cap.

One Sunday at church, I was in the library telling someone about the cradle cap.  Another woman walked by and said, "Mustela!"  Um, what?  She said it was a magical shampoo that worked wonders on her babies, and although a little pricey, well worth every penny.  So the next day, I headed to Target and bought myself a bottle of Mustela.

This was probably about 4.5 months ago.  Had we washed Doodlebug's hair every day, the timeline of cradle cap might have been shorter, but I didn't want to dry the poor kid out.  But we are down to the last 3 flakes!  Yahoo!  

It was so hard for me not to pick, and sometimes I did, but I know things would not have improved like they did had we not used Mustela.  It took me a little while to get used to the smell but I'm grateful there's a product out there for little scalps like Doodlebug's.

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L = lds.org

I used the church's website fairly frequently in the past but now that I'm the secretary in Primary, I'm visiting lds.org multiple times a day.

Whether it's to look something up in next year's sharing time manual, or someone's e-mail address in the ward directory, or this month's Visiting Teaching message, I have mounds of information right at my fingertips.

Church leaders speak often about the positive things the Internet can be used for.  The church's website is a perfect example.  Talks are easier to write, questions can be answered about an array of topics in a matter of seconds, church related coloring pages can be printed for The Lime before I'd be able to find a coloring book in his cluttered room.

I'm grateful the church has modern tools that allow me to magnify my calling at church and help me to be a better mom, wife, and friend.

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K = Kevin

When we took The Lime to one of the fire station open houses a few months back, he particularly loved the obstacle course and went through it several times. One of the firemen working the course came across as a tough, no-nonsense type of guy, which sort of rubbed me the wrong way. The Lime is 4, for heaven's sake! Cut the kid some slack.

While I took The Lime around the rest of the station, LaVor asked this particular fireman if there were any t-shirts for sale (we really want one for The Lime to complete his fire outfit). Unfortunately, they don't sell the ones they wear but he did have some breast cancer ones leftover from a previous fundraiser. That lead to LaVor telling Kevin about our participation in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer and it all went downhill from there.

Kevin is now one of The Lime's best friends. And although there's at least a 40 year difference, I couldn't be more grateful for the example Kevin is setting for The Lime.

We went to visit him on Halloween and he met us in the parking lot, asking if we needed any help coming in. He is more than willing to show The Lime every nook and cranny of the stations, answer any and all questions he has, and is so stinkin' nice!

He was at the funeral service for the fallen Sheriff and came right up to us, asked how our Halloween was, how we were doing, etc. And he calls The Lime "Bubs" which just about melts my heart.

Every time we see him, he reminds The Lime to listen to his parents, work hard in school, be confident, and always try his best. Since what we tell him seems to go through one ear and out the other, I'm thankful Kevin can be a positive influence on The Lime and that he's so very kind to him.

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J = Jumpers

Almost a month ago, my friend and I were talking about Doodlebug needing a jumper. He's getting a bit too big and mobile to just hang out in his vibrating seat, and he needs a little more stimulation. She kindly offered her jumper to us and what a blessing that was! Those things are expensive!

Doodlebug was as happy as a clam the first time I put him in it. It has been a huge lifesaver, especially at dinner making time when he needs attention but I can't give him as much as he'd like. I park him in a safe spot, where we can see each other, and he bounces away while I cook.

I've even brought it outside while The Lime plays and I monitor. It was particularly sunny one day so I set up an umbrella and blankets for shade. The Lime thought it was the coolest fort and hung out at Doodlebug's feet for the remainder of the afternoon.

I'm so grateful that I have a spot to keep Doodlebug contained, where he's happy and chatty, and I don't have to listen to screaming for over an hour. And I'm grateful for generous friends who are more than willing to share!

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I = Innie

Don't worry, this is not a far stretch. I really am thankful for innie belly buttons.

Growing up, there was an array of belly buttons in my family. My sisters had legit innies, mine was in the middle of and innie and an outie. Then I had babies and it all went downhill from there. Having my belly button pop out was one of the worst things about being pregnant, for me. It made me extremely self conscious and I went as far as taping it down, which just irritated my stretched out skin.

When The Lime's umbilical cord fell off, he had a nice, cute belly button.

Doodlebug wasn't so lucky. I think his cord fell off prematurely. It was gross, stunk like you wouldn't believe, bled, oozed, but wasn't infected. And...it appeared to be an ugly outie.

I'm a horrible mother for even worrying about such a petty thing but I was REALLY afraid he was going to have a protruding outie. I had horrible flashbacks of the girl I remember seeing at Kennedy Park who had the worst outie I had ever seen. It was as if she had a small finger coming out of her stomach. Eeeekkkk!

But, thankfully, Doodlebug's outie transformed into an innie with just a little outie, similar to mine.

I'm thankful I can give Doodlebug raspberries on his cute tummy and not get the heebie jeebies from his belly button.