The Hillian Collection

We've had a lot happen in the last few weeks within the Hill household. Jedidiah was born on December 6th at 2:13pm--more on that later. We officially became Gainesville homeowners--more on that later. Sean got a full-time instructor position at FLVS--more on that later.

For now, I'll leave you all with our sweet firstborn singing hymns to us this Christmas morning. Lately, he's taken to grabbing the Trinity Hymnal from its resting spot, bringing it to us and saying "dee" (aka "please"), and sitting with us on the couch as we sing him a hymn--that is, until he decides he's had enough of it. Well, today, we caught him sitting alone with the Trinity Hymnal he had just retrieved, singing as he flipped through it. You'll have to trust me that it really is him singing. He certainly knows how to melt his mama's heart--now, if only he'd start saying "mama."::sigh::

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When I walked into the kitchen this morning, grabbing my keys on my way out the door for my dentist appointment (first visit for two and a half years, and they couldn't stop complimenting my good hygiene--alright!), my heart stopped when I saw this mess wishing me good morning.

Then I belly-breathed and realized: our popcorn bowls and coke were enjoyed and prepared by my husband right before bed as we watched Sherlock together before falling asleep, the frying pan was soaking after Sammy got a good, healthy breakfast of scrambled eggs made by his daddy at 6:30 in the morning while I got to sleep in, the baking dish was never cleaned after our return from the church fellowship meal because we had a lovely relaxing afternoon together, and the saucepan is soaking after reheating the homemade lamb stew Sean made me on Saturday night with ingredients from the farmers market he went to without me (again, while I slept in).

So, I suppose, a little mess in the kitchen is nothing to complain about.

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It's an obsession. Yep, a toy Dyson is definitely on Sammy's Christmas list. I took this video after having cleaned the kitchen, and ten minutes later, he's still vacuuming. So then I decided to straighten the living room. And he's still vacuuming. I honestly don't know what else to do. So I'm blogging this. I guess I should fold laundry, but I really don't feel like doing all that bending right now. I've got a baby in the way, don't you know?

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Fortunately, this correlated to Sammy's new-found obsession--quite literally an obsession--with the vacuum, so the kitchen floor had already been vacuumed twice this morning when this happened. All was not lost.

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One of the ridiculous App Store purchases I've made is Elmo Calls where Elmo essentially FaceTimes with you--all for the low, low price of $5.99. (Additional calls may be purchased for only $1.99!) Yeah, it's ridiculous.

Well, tonight we had to call upon Elmo to relax our hysterical son after Dada had made him laugh so hard he couldn't calm himself as we were driving around town. I'm so glad Sean snapped this screen shot of Sammy midway through his chat with Elmo. His face perfectly displays how tightly we're wound around his sweet little finger. World, I present to you your king.

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I guess it's about time Jedidiah made an appearance on this ol' blog. Wait...what's that? We named him, finally? Yes, that's right. We decided to opt out of naming him Seanson Football Hill--a glorious name in and of itself--and chose instead Jedidiah Paul Hill. (Jedidiah means "beloved of the Lord." It was a name we always loved since deciding on Samuel's name, and it just stuck with us. Paul is after my father.)

And here's his appearance:

I took this video while Sammy was napping. I hope they start coordinating their nap schedules quickly. Momma likes her R&R.

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Sean sent me this picture from the movie theater he's at tonight (watching the new James Bond film). He thought Sammy would like to see this. Without a doubt.

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Sammy's been on a "boom" kick lately. He throws his pacis back in the crib. "Boom!" He throws the silverware from the dishwasher to the floor.* "Boom!" He throws acorns down the slide. "Boom!" Okay, maybe it's more of a throwing kick, but he just gets so excited to say "boom." This morning he started taking the piles of folded diapers and throwing them into the laundry basket. Of course, "Boom!"

The best part is that, while replaying this video for Sammy, in real time he kept saying "boom" and answering our video voices with "God." I wish we had a video of that moment.

*I'm fine with this since it gives me time to clean the kitchen.

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Sammy's meme and papa brought back this little apron for Sammy from their trip to England last month. This morning, he's been testing it out with every activity he can think of.
Housework? Check. He went immediately to the dishwasher after we tied it on him.
Yard work? Check. Pushing his toy lawn mower is yard work, right?
Construction? Check. Those rocks in his rock box got moved hither and thither with not a fleck of dirt reaching Sammy's clothes.
Fun on the slide? Why not?!

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That's the subject of the email I just received from my parents after they came across this gem while searching through old photos. I don't think we need any DNA tests to prove that Sammy is my son. He's even as goofy as I apparently was (and still am).

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Sammy's been channeling his favorite Sesame Street smash hit "Outdoors" by Jason Mraz featuring Elmo lately. The mornings have been pretty chilly, but the afternoons in Gainesville have been quite wonderful. So after waking from his naps, we've been heading outdoors to do a bit of lawn mowing, playing in the rockin' turtle and leaving our favorite hippo in the planter...no, I think we like him better off the grilling patio.


Our forays into the backyard have also prompted the use of a new word in Sammy's vocabulary: gee. It means "please." He'll walk over to what he wants, be it swinging in the swing, climbing the ladder or climbing, yes climbing, the slide, turn to us, and say "gee" to get one of us to come over and help him. It's a far cry, quite literally, from the aptly-named pterodactyl scream that used to pierce the air whenever he wanted something. Oh, how nice it is to have a sweet-tempered child.

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I'm getting a kick out of my two boys tonight, and, no, I'm not including my unborn child in this (although I am getting a lot of kicks from him too). I'm over here relaxing on the couch, reading the 15+ blogs I follow (Don't judge. I had to pick up something new when I decided to ditch watching TV shows on Netflix.), when I notice my son watching Sesame Street on YouTube and my husband playing a new video game on his phone (notice his thumb placement on the screen). Nothing else is happening. We're having a lazy night tonight.

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Oh, just enjoying a little post-prenatal appointment at our favorite place in Gainesville, BBTC.

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Sammy used to take the best, most glorious three-hour naps that have even been had by a sweet.little.angel.baby on this earth. But when we started nap training--earlier, even--he, for some reason would consistently wake after an hour or so into his nap, and sometimes, he could be lulled back into sleep but sometimes not. Sigh. It really cuts into my productivity to have to stop what I'm doing to go in and soothe him back to sleep every single nap. And yes, we tried letting him try to soothe himself back to sleep (we're talking giving him hours to soothe cry himself back to sleep extreme wakefulness); it was unsuccessful.

So we hoped that by going to him as soon as he wakes mid-nap for the past week, while he's not fully aware of everything yet, and trying to soothe him with our hand over his tummy, we could get him used to sleeping through three full hours again. And today he did it. Hallelujah! Let's hope this becomes a consistent habit again by the time little Seanson comes. That would be glorious, indeed.

Here's Sean going in to rescue Sammy today. Sweet snuggly little thing.

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After I had to throw out the beautiful flowers Sean got me last week, Sammy decided to spoil his mommy with a fresh bouquet from the grocers because he knew how she loved having flowers around. Okay, so maybe his mommy only asked, "Do you like these, Sammy?" after deciding on them herself, to which Sammy replied by simply staring at the bouquet as she placed it in the cart. But, hey! I take it however I can get it.

Also, it's been about a year since Sean and I have played each other in Monopoly (a game we both love), but I totally kicked his P90X butt tonight! I love winning. And my husband. But mostly win--I mean--my husband.

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It's kind of hard to tell, but he's got two in one hand, one in another and one in his mouth. There's another two floating somewhere in the crib. Oh man, this kid makes me laugh.

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It took about 45 minutes until he finally laid his head down tonight, but only because he propped himself in a sitting position for the longest time (think 30 minutes), with his little head nodding off and snapping back up. There was hardly any crying once the door was closed on him, but he was very, very sad during Sean's entire reading/singing/lights-out routine. All in all, I'd say this has been a delightfully successful endeavor. Now I'm off to read as many chapters of The Count of Monte Cristo as my eyes will allow me tonight. Sleep tight, little Sammy.

(You'll notice I moved the monitor today to a more effective vantage point.)

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Not quite sure what I did to deserve this. I married and mothered myself some good ones. As soon as I finish this, we'll be off on a family morning walk. Life is good today.

ETA: There's always a catch. Mommy had to clean up the mess that was the kitchen afterward. :-) Not complainin'. Just sayin'.

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because Sammy fell asleep on his own tonight for the first time in his 16.5 months of life. Not in my arms. Not in his carseat. Not in his stroller. But in his crib, with lights out and door closed.

I have been giving Sean excuse after excuse for the past two months as to why he needed to let me no-cry sleep train Sammy gradually; but I never could suffer letting him fuss when I put him down sleepy-not-asleep, so my methods were nearly completely ineffective. Especially after letting him co-sleep with us when he got sick in Disney World, we took quite a few large steps backward in any progress we had made since early August when our co-sleeping ended. Since then, it would take me as long as an hour to rock him to sleep at night as well as him some nights waking every.single.hour until I zombie-like carried him into bed with us for the rest if the night (most nights were not this bad, but we knew we couldn't allow this with a new baby coming soon).

Tonight, Sean told me it was time. Mommy was not putting Sammy to bed. Sean read to him. Sung to him. Said goodnight. And closed the door. Screaming ensued. Oh yes, screaming ensued. For a good 20 minutes Sammy was crying and screaming harder than I've ever heard before, moving desperately from one side of the crib to the other. I fully expected this to last for a couple hours at least, and I'll admit that I was quite a mess in the other room, watching him on the baby monitor. But it only lasted for those 20 (terrible) minutes. He started standing in one corner off the crib for about 10 minutes. Then he lowered his little body and went to sleep. 30 minutes! That's all. We truly are grateful to our Heavenly Father who grants us even the blessing of a self-soothing toddler despite our neglect to even ask him for such a blessing.

(Sammy's head is in the center of the screen, peaking out over the crib railing.)

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It truly is fall, and subsequently holiday time, when eggnog hits the shelves. Sammy and I found this at Fresh Market today (yes, that's where I grocery shop when Sean leaves town and I have no accountability). It's Sammy's first ever glass of eggnog--complete with nutmeg sprinkled on top. The time taken to down about 6oz of this stuff? About 2 minutes. Ha! His Uncle Josh will be so proud.

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This is my dinner--a ham sandwich. Recipe: bread and ham. That's it. Ha! This is the kind of meal that just hurts Sean's brain (and tummy) for how boring it is, but I'm loving it because it makes me feel like a kid again eating it. It's so sweetly simple. Bon appetit to me!

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Since the evenings have been so nice lately, Sean and I (well, in tonight's case, it's just me) have been sitting on our bench in the front garden watching Sammy as he strolls around, displacing the freshly-laid pine straw his Uncle Josh so sweetly dispersed on Saturday. This is my view tonight. I'll probably be out here another half our or so, sipping my Mexican coke I just picked up from the store. Oops, I shouldn't have revealed that. I hope Sean's not reading this.

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Orlando must be the place for good wet fun. Sammy really loved the water area in Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom two weekends ago. Unfortunately, we didn't pack him any extra clothes, so we left the park shortly after this. His shorts had already fallen off him from the weight of the water and his lack of a poofy cloth-diapered bottom.

And last weekend, Sammy played in this fountain with his Meme and Papa while Sean and I went into an olive oil and balsamic vinegar store. That was fun for everyone involved.

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We already knew Sammy was a picky eater, but this blows all my expectations out of the pasta bowl. While eating veggie pasta spirals, he set aside the spinach noodles he rejected as he ate from the other array of noodles. I'm so impressed, I'm not even upset by this additional persnicketiness.

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If Sammy didn't take good naps, I'm not quite sure what I'd do. You'd probably know a very different Megan.

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We never deny Sammy his shoes when he brings them to us to put on him. So when he handed them to me this morning after our shower while still nude, I put those puppies on him. If he could dress like this at all times, I'm sure he'd be the happiest little Sammy. Unfortunately, Mommy and Daddy already don't enjoy cleaning out his diapers, let alone messes that would trail behind him, so we'll keep putting clothes on him.

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So now that we know we'll be having another boy, the only new clothes I imagine I'll be purchasing for Seanson are outfits to match Sammy for special occasions (random Sundays, Christmas, Easter). But how could I forget about Daddy?! He got such a kick out of matching Sammy on Sunday. It was even his idea! Of course, my menfolk will always, always match on game days.

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It's that time of year again! Sean's been talking nonstop about football season all summer. Here's hoping it lives up to his expectations! Go Gators!

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...is TODDLER talk! The coos of my Sweet-Little-Angel-Baby Sammy sure were cute, but they're nothing to the hilarity of the things coming out of his mouth now. He's got the squeals of joy along with the incessant non-speech speech, which mimics the tones of conversation perfectly. But one of the funniest things he's started doing recently is mimicking the sound the garage door makes as it opens. We cannot help but laugh every time we press the button (or he presses the button, more like), and he turns in a split second to yell the sound back to us. Sammy's Music Together instructor would be so proud--even the pitch is the same!

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Sammy is a terrible eater. It's been this way from the beginning, but especially since we introduced solid foods, he's never quite been--how you say--a fan. Even foods he really, really likes (steak, pork, chicken), he'll refuse even when he hasn't eaten in a while. It's enough to make a momma go off food, too.

So I've started documenting his meals before and after, particularly because his 15 month appointment is less than a month away. And, what do you know? One of his first documentations was a success. Yes, we sat at the table for about forty-five minutes, and yes, YouTube videos were playing constantly. But he got most of it down!

Before:

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Sammy can walk after all! I'm not even sure when Sammy officially took his "first steps" because he didn't follow through with them until now (I think it was around 12 months). He's just such an efficient little crawler that anything more than one step from his comfort zone and he would just end up on the floor to zoom to where he wanted to go.

But last night, when I wasn't paying attention, lo and behold, he walks across half the living room. So as soon as Daddy came home from class, and Sammy was in his night-time-crazies mode (see video below), we tried to encourage him walking, and he did it! I've got to wonder how much better he would have done last night if we wasn't so giggly, but you'll see in the second video, which was taken a mere 12 hours after he starting this walking showcase, how much sturdier he is.

Last night. Approximately 9pm. 14 months, 2.5 weeks old.

This morning. Approximately 9am.



I knew that once he finally started walking, he would be an expert. It was this way with crawling too. And as I write this, I realize that Sammy has actually been crawling longer than he was immobile--from  7 months to over 14 months. Oh, Sammy. You goofball.

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I've officially gotten my butt-kicking regarding Sammy's over-the-top cosleeping habits. If you were to ask Sammy where he used to sleep, he would, of course, say that he slept in his own bed. But what he would be leaving out is that he considered it his bed only after seizing it from Mommy and Daddy. But after some pressure from an elder at our church as well as Daddy finally having enough, Mommy was forced to get her butt in gear and her baby out of their bed.

Sammy's room has, until now, never properly been Sammy's room. First it was a guest room for helpers when Sammy was a newborn (since we only had a bedside bassinet at that point), then we got a crib, but shoved it our bedroom in order to keep the "guest room" intact. But then we finally got rid of that queen bed with big plans to make that room Sammy's officially, but when push came to shove, Mommy got cold feet. I had my excuses: Sammy was sick and not ready to be on his own, I wanted to stabilize the art about his crib so it wouldn't fall on his little head in the night, etc. etc. Until the room was fairly nonfunctional as anything other than storage.

But when Sean told me that "tonight's the night," I got my act together and finally, after 14 months in this house, made Sammy his very own functional space that's all his own. I don't have any before pictures for you, since I'm pretty embarrassed about it's former stages, but this is how it looks now:

His crib is pulled about a foot away from the window, and those curtains block adequate amounts of light in the morning so that he'll sleep in until 7:30am or later. I never stabilized that art on the shelf, so I just decided to move the changing table under it, which is where the crib used to be. And that rocker has always been there, but the arrangement of the room before made it so out of the way that it never go used. Now we sit and read Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Freight Train and Chugga Chugga Choo Choo to him at night as he's winding down. I also moved one of Sammy's two giant toy baskets in this room in an effort to declutter the living room, but it's served itself well in this room as a fun way for Sammy to let off some steam in the late hours of the evening. He used to cry whenever he went in this room because it was never fun and only used for "abandonment," but now he really loves it. And we cherish the time we spend in there together with Sammy at night. And Sammy will even take his three hour naps in here now. I've been able to get so much done in just the naps Sammy's had this past week, since I used to always lay down with him since I was so tired in my first trimester.

Here's the living room's "Sammy corner" with one less large basket full of toys (it's hard to imagine that there were two HUGE baskets next to each other before):

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As Sean told me the other day, "My allergies are really bad, but it's okay because it means football's almost here." Ah, college football Saturdays, when Sean dons his Gators shirts from seasons past, we set up all our electronic devices to display as many games as possible, and Sammy puts on the Gator garb that currently fits him. Wait--Sammy has no Gator outfits in 2T? This is a disaster!

So off to the semi-annual consignment sale, Just Between Friends, we go to get not one, two, three or even four outfits, surpassing five and six (and, of course, seven since 789), to get TEN new Gator outfits for both Sammy and his new brother* so that they're properly decked out for game days.

So, say it with me now: Heeeeere come the Gators!

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So fine. It's been over two months since my last post. I'd be surprised if anyone is even going to check my blog. Kudos to you from me if you're reading this now. ;-)

Back in March, after Sean essentially completed his Master's degree by finishing his thesis, he planted a vegetable garden in our backyard. He has ten tomato plants, eight eggplant plants (or eggplants?), four cayenne pepper plants and seven collard plants. They're just about matured enough to harvest. Mmmm mmmm. Here's Daddy and Sammy working hard to put it all together.

Relocating grass before gardening.

Sammy can put away dirt like it's no one's business.

In April, I took Sammy to a local park and snapped some great photos of of my cheese-ball. I meant to share them earlier as updated 10-month-old shots, but they've just been sitting on my computer since then. My bad. Here are some of the highlights.

See? Cheese-ball.

What in the world?

Sammy's signature bear crawl

And finally, for those of you who can't see any of me in Sammy's features, here's a baby picture of me around 6 months for comparison.

Megan in 1989

Sammy in 2011

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