What a Trip!

We're back from a long (but great!) trip to Alabama. Here's a quick recap:

On Thursday before Christmas, we loaded up Jason, Kelli, Wyatt, Callie, Sadie, Watson, and the dog in the Excursion and hit the road at 2:00 PM. We drove through the night Thursday and most of the day Friday, stopping only to feed someone, let someone use the bathroom, or fill the tank. Other than that, it was just us and the road. Although rather stinky when we arrived 26 hours after leaving, we were glad to have had safe travels.

We stayed with Moms and Pops in Trussville. Jason's brother and sister-in-law, Stephen and Lauren, got there the next day, so Moms and Pops were glad to have everyone at the house for Christmas. It was great to see Stephen and Lauren; we don't get to do that often since they live in Florida.

On Christmas day, Moms picked up her parents from the retirement home in Cook Springs and brought them to the house. It was fun seeing four generations together in the same place, and Great Grandmother and Great Granddaddy Glaze got a kick out of all the little ones running around. Sadie squealed and got excited about everything, whether the gift was for her or not. Watson just sat quietly and took it all in.

The day after Christmas, we drove to Anniston to see Pops' side of the family - aunts, uncles, cousins, and other extended family. We spent the afternoon there and had a grand old time.

Kelli took a shotgun and harvested some mistletoe. I don't know how others do it, but that's the way it's done in Alabama. Shoot some squirrel shot at the mistletoe and it just comes tumbling to the ground to be gathered. Lots easier than trying to climb the tree.

Funny thing is, Uncle Mike has a donkey (named Jack - guess what his last name is!) that decided the mistletoe Kelli was holding would make a nice snack. Kelli couldn't turn her back on Jack or her prized "kill" would start missing a few leaves here and there.
Uncle Mike's brother stopped by in the Rat Rod he's been working on. As you can see, it's awfully ugly, but that's the point. The saw blades across the front are just clipped on for now. He hasn't welded them in place yet, because he's still experimenting with where exactly they should be.
Jason's cousin Wesley has an S10 pickup that's on the quick side. Wide tires in the back, Chevy 350 under the hood - it'll get you there in a hurry. He took the kids on a ride down the driveway and back (it's a long driveway) and took Jason out for a spin. To call it loud would be an understatement. To call is slow would be a downright lie.

The day after Anniston trip, we loaded up and drove to Northport, outside Tuscaloosa, to see Papa's side of the family. Kelli's uncles and aunts and cousins were there, and it made for quite a crowd. They're all big Alabama football fans, so you can be they'll be tuning in to the national championship game in the next few days. Here's the whole gang on the steps.

As usual, we had a great time visiting with everyone. Papa's brothers are a hoot! We had traditional Christmas fare - hot wings, Chick-fil-A nuggets, ribs, potato salad, baked beans, and fried pickles. Oh yeah - and enough dessert to feed a village. No, make that two villages. We all ate way too much.

Though we would have loved to stay longer, we loaded the Excursion again and drove to Montgomery to see Kelli's sister and her husband. We mainly just hung out, though we did make one journey downtown to see the big Christmas tree at the capitol building. Here we all are (well, most of us) in front of the tree.
We did get pulled over on the highway between Tuscaloosa and Montgomery. It was night time and the driver (Jason) let our land yacht drift a little too far across the center line. The officer approached the Excursion, and with his flashlight shining in the window, he saw booster set, car seat, car seat, car seat, wife, father-in-law, driver. After about the second car seat, he must've determined we were no threat. He just checked Jason's license and insurance, made sure we were okay, and sent us on our way. Later, Papa said he probably pulled us over because he'd never met anyone from North Dakota. Apparently, not many folks from the upper-midwest drive through Podunk, Alabama (not the real town name).

After a couple of days in Montgomery, it was back to Trussville. We participated in all the fun stuff at Moms and Pops house - riding the zip line, riding the battery powered jeep, going on hay rides, playing with marshmallow guns, going on four wheeler rides, sitting around bonfires, shooting Wyatt's new BB gun (Christmas present), making s'mores, and mixing kids and fireworks. Sadie was a big fan of the sparklers.
There were lots of other tons-of-fun things we did, too, but space and time are both short. Suffice it to say, it was a GREAT trip to Alabama.

On New Year's Day, we loaded up (again) in the Excursion and headed back to Fargo. We made better time on the way back - only twenty-FIVE hours instead of twenty-SIX. We couldn't have asked for the kids to be any better, though. They're some real troopers (and road warriors). The final total was 3287 miles. We'll probably not drive anywhere else for a while... :)

Early Christmas

Mom: "Callie, would it be fun to have Christmas early and open up presents tomorrow?"

Callie: "Um, I don't want to."

Well, there you have it. A child who is not excited about opening gifts.

Family Update

Well, now that we're all settling into a better routine with a new member of the family, hopefully some time will be available to keep up with the blog on a more regular basis. Of course, you shouldn't hold your breath...

Here's a quick overview of everyone in our household:

Since the weather's been so nice (no permanent snow yet), Jason's had lots of time to get the house ready for winter. All the leaves are out of the yard, the lawnmower and the snowblower have changed positions in the garage, and the downstairs windows have a little extra insulation around them. Today, he even got the garage cleaned up so that when it does become time to crank the snowblower, he's got plenty of room to maneuver it out into the driveway. Hopefully, it's a few more weeks (months?) until we get to that point, but at least things are already set to go. Jason also watched some football this weekend - real football (SEC) - so he enjoyed that.

Kelli has spent lots of time putting up Christmas decorations. Because we're cheap, our budget for new decorations is zero. However, that doesn't mean we don't have some snazzy new stuff this year. Back during Fargo's cleanup week (last May), we found a lot of garland, lights, and wreaths that someone had put on the curb as trash. After sorting through it, Kelli discovered it was actually in good shape. Really good shape. (Still haven't figured out why it was being tossed, other than the owner just got tired of it.) The result is that now we've got "new" garland around our door (with lights!), a couple of new wreaths (with bows and balls) on the door and fence, and a small lighted tree (tasteful - not tacky) on the front porch. Cheap? Yes. But seriously - it really looks nice.

Wyatt enjoyed his time off school for Thanksgiving. With the nice weather, he and Jason spent quite a bit of time playing football in the yard. Well, it probably wasn't actually football that was being played - at least not in the sense that anyone else would understand the rules - but it was played with a football, so maybe that counts. Wyatt's at the age where it's fun to make up new rules or change the rules as the game progresses to increase his odds of winning. If you're a Calvin and Hobbes fan, you could think of it as Calvin Ball. Regardless, it was good exercise for father and son, and a good bonding experience. And the nice weather made it all the more enjoyable.

Callie asks each day (several times) if it's Christmas. Nope, it isn't Christmas. We've still got a month or so. How about now? Is it Christmas now? Nope. Hasn't changed from ten minutes ago. Is tomorrow Christmas? Nope. It's in a month. Is Christmas next week? No. A month. When is Christmas? December. Is it December? No. Not yet. When will it be December? In a few days. Then will it be Christmas? Not until the end of December. Will it be Christmas tonight? You get the picture...

Sadie has greatly improved her climbing skills, though her parents do not necessarily approve. Just the other day, when Jason was alone with all four children while Kelli ran some errands, he walked into the kitchen to find Sadie sitting cross legged in the middle of the kitchen table (stark naked, no less), helping herself to a beverage left from supper. Just because food appears to be out of her reach on the counter doesn't mean that it's actually in a space she cannot get to. She's quite resourceful, and if food's involved, can climb to great lengths to get it. We discovered she's able to access the apple bowl. We also discovered she prefers to take only a bite or two from one apple before moving on to the next.

Watson has begun to smile. They're still pretty few and far between, but at least we're beginning to see some. He really is adjusting well, and he's usually very content. He gets a little testy if he asks for food and doesn't get it in approximately half a second, but other than that, he's pretty mild mannered. It's fun to watch him be a bit more interactive now as he gets older. He's still tiny, of course, but that makes for some great snuggle time. We sure do love that little guy!

So that's the world of the Medders family.

A Quick Update

It has been a while since our last update, but life is very busy as we try to find our new normal with four kids.

Here are some pictures from what has happened in the last month.

Jason and Callie celebrated birthdays. We had a combined party on Halloween.

This little girl has come a long way in four years. She had a really great time opening presents and being sung to.

Before the birthday celebrations, we took the kids trick or treating. Sadie thought it was great fun. She couldn't eat the candy fast enough. I love this picture of Sadie and Grandpops.

Wyatt adores his baby brother. He was very excited that Watson received an outfit that matched one of his shirts. When Wyatt wears his shirt, he always asks me to dress Watson in his outfit so they will look alike. Oh, and Wyatt lost his first tooth!

Watson was being serious before bedtime.

We went on our yearly hunting trip - with all four kids and two grandparents in tow. We had a great time. I was able to shoot this beautiful buck.

Miss Sadie loves the outdoors. We have had some wonderful fall days where the kids can still play outside. I love that it was mid-November before we had our first snowfall.

So there is a super-speedy overview of the last few weeks. I want to have time to post more about each of the kids but I just need to figure out a time to do that. We are all doing well though and Watson seems to be settling right in as a "Medders."

We are home and in the process of learning our new normal. I have not yet figured out how to have 4 children. My biggest accomplishment of the day was walking to school. Wyatt walked, Callie and Sadie rode in the wagon and Watson was in the sling attached to me. It worked nicely. It probably will continue to work nicely until there is ice on the ground. Then I will have to rethink my plan.

I have come to realize I am intimidated by having four kids. I don't know when I will get the nerve to go anywhere (besides walking to school) with all of them. Me versus 4 children. Oh my, I would be incredibly outnumbered. Miss Sadiebug is my wild card right now. She is learning that she now has to walk more because I can't carry her as much. That is giving her more freedom to explore her surroundings and ignore her mother. She is fiesty and I am trying to figure out how to reign that in while also understanding she has had to give up her "baby" status to become a "big sister." Most of the time she loves doting on Watson but if I think she is being a little too helpful, an earsplitting tantrum is soon to follow, thus my fears about taking her out in public.

We have been back in Fargo for a week now and are working on new routines. Jason was off all last week so it was incredibly convenient to have an extra set of hands. Now that I am solo during the day, I am finding it little more difficult. To help with bonding, we try to hold Watson as much as possible. I haven't quite figured out how to multitask while doing that. I am also a little under the weather so that is not helping my ability to be topnotch. Hopefully with each passing day I will start to feel better and I will learn how to be a more proficient mother of four.

We think Watson is adjusting to our family wonderfully. I had expected a fussy, unsettled baby but he is neither of those. He loves to snuggle and be held and sleeps wonderfully well during daylight hours or when he is sleeping right next to us. We are still working on the sleeping at night part, though. He also likes to eat. Every three hours. Around the clock. No matter how much we try to feed the little guy, it will only tide him over for three hours.

Watson had his first pediatrician visit here in Fargo and it went wonderfully. She thought he looked and sounded great and he is growing nicely. Must be the 3 hour feedings. He is fighting a cold right now thanks to the helpfulness of his younger sisters. We all got sick on our way back and Callie and Sadie just can't stay away from him so they passed their cold on to him. I will be glad when we are all healthy again.

Bathtime.

Hanging out in Mommy's lap.

Welcome to Our Family

On Tuesday we were able to welcome the newest member of our family, Watson Howard Medders. He is a beautiful baby and we are loving every minute with him. Wyatt, Callie and Sadie are doing amazingly well. We have not been cleared to come home with him yet(waiting on paperwork to clear) but hopefully that will happen soon. We are excited to get back to Fargo to our new normal.

Adoption Day

Tuesday, October 11 at 9 AM is the big day when we will be meeting our new little guy and filling out the necessary papers to bring him home with us. Please pray it will be a wonderful, joyful day as we meet our new guy we will continue to have a peace that he is to be the newest member of our family.

The kids are very excited about the new brother they get to meet tomorrow, and Jason's parents have joined us for support and to help with the three oldest children.

My nerves and emotions are all over the place but I do feel a peace and believe this decision for us to be the parents was reached with a lot of thought and prayer.

Thank you for your continued love, support, encouragement and prayers.