The Rayment Reader

Okay, so we got a new camera for Christmas. I already took a bunch of pictures, then I discovered black and white. Let's just say Mom and Dad are so proud of our boy. Which one do you like the best? I bet you can guess which one we like.

A.


B.


C.

Here's the moment we've all be waiting for. Hope you enjoy!

Thank you to Paula and Bekah who have renewed my interest in our family's names and their meanings. Although they have changed slightly over the years due to circumstances, Chris and I had names picked out for our children before we were even married. Amazingly enough choosing names is one of the things we quickly agreed on. I know it is hard for a lot of couple to agree on but not us.

I did a bit of research and discovered that I live in a house full of Greeks. Except for me, everyone has a Greek derived name. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the Greek heritage. In fact, Chris' Great Aunt Mary has a Macedonian (a region of Greece) heritage that lends itself to some very tasty treats at Christmas time. It just happens to make me the oddball for now.

Christopher means Christbearer, Alexander means Defender of Men and Colin means Victor. Baby Timothy, who we'll one day see again in heaven, also has a Greek name meaning honoring God.

Even the cats have Greek names: Pandora is the goddess of gifts and Athena is the goddess of wisdom and war. Pandora's name was chosen because we brought the curious little thing home in a box. We wanted to stick with the goddess theme when we chose Athena, but she sure has lived up to her name. She is the alpha female and constantly alerting us with her war chatter to bugs, spiders squirrels, etc.

Which brings me to my name.... it's Latin! And it means beloved. The thing I have always loved about my name is that it means the same as my dad's - David. And if we ever have a girl, the name we picked out, Kathryn, also means beloved - but alas, we would have another Greek in the family.

Our little man was in the tubby last night and called me in so I could watch him play. I told him that I had to make daddy a hot chocolate first, but then I could. This was his response, "Could you make me hot chocolate too? I'll give you 5 dollars from Daddy's car!" I told him I would when he got out of the tubby. As I turned to head to the kitchen he added, "Then you could put the money in my piggy bank!" During the summer he usually offered a flower if I would do what he wanted. How we got from a flower to 5 dollars, I'll never know! And somewhere along the line, we're going to have to have a chat about the difference between a bribe and a loan.

Well, it was pretty clear today during the ultrasound whether the baby is a boy or girl! Curious? Check out this website to find out... http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/m/macanne/ or click on the title!

I'm so proud of my little man! Saturday at Christmas program practice, he clammed up on stage and just watched everyone else singing and doing the choreography. I knew he knew the motions and most of the words because we've been practicing at home. I didn't want to take any chances and not get his cuteness on video so I taped him practicing Sunday morning in his pj's before church.

At church we encouraged him to be brave and do his best, all the while crossing our fingers and hoping he would show his stuff. And he did! It was too dark in the sanctuary to get a good video so we'll have to post the "pj practice" for you to enjoy. After the song was finished he came running back to our pew, "Mommy are you proud of me?" You bet I was!

I love his sensitive heart and willingness to please us! Don't get me wrong, he definitely has a stubborn streak. But he melts my heart every time he asks, "Mommy, are you proud of me?"

Chris is always bugging me to blog so I thought I'd give it a try since he seems to have blogger's block right now. I've really enjoyed reading everyone else's blogs lately. Since we're so far away from family and friends, I love reading about the hilarious antics of kids and cats, and even the trials friends are facing too.

Speaking of kids, Alex is at such a fun age right now. I worked at a daycare during the summers of high school and college and never really enjoyed the preschool age kids. But having a preschooler of my own has put me in awe of what a wonderful kid God blessed us with.

He may look like me, but he is soooo Daddy when it comes to his personality. In addition to being quite the little actor, he loves to sing just like Daddy. He's been practicing his song for the church Christmas program next Sunday. I hope we can get it on video because he really gets into it, motions and all. Of course, when we took the CD home for Thanksgiving, he got stage fright - must come from Mom. He loves singing Christmas carols right now and we just have to sit back and laugh at some of the words he makes up when the singer is going too fast for him to understand. An old footstool we have provides him with a perfect stage that he takes advantage of often.

Of course, the song we hear the most is his version of a Goofy Movie song. The lyrics he sings are, "Shake your whole body!" which he proudly sings anytime he is naked, emphasizing the shaking of his derriere on the second syllable of body. Needless to say this has provided us with many blackmail opportunities!

We're hoping to know sometime this month whether we'll have a Colin Christopher or a Kathryn Marie joining the family in April. I'm past the half way mark and have been feeling the baby move a lot. Thank you so much for your prayers! We are really looking forward to having this baby join our family. And Chris is more than ready to turn litter box duty back over to me.

Every time Alex notices that I'm feeling the baby move, he asks if it is coming out yet. Yesterday he asked how the baby was going to get out and I had to do some fast thinking. "It's like magic," I replied. Well, I guess that was wishful thinking because I know it will be anything but magic. A miracle, definitely, but certainly not magic.

It's beginning to feel a lot like the North Pole here in Wisconsin. I knew we would be in for a lot more snow than Indiana but these below freezing temperatures are for the penguins. Right now I would welcome some snow, just for the sake of knowing that the temperatures would be warmer. The apartment is all decorated and ready for Christmas and we've all gained a few pounds chowing down on the Christmas cookies Chris made yesterday. The cats quickly made themselves at home under the tree.

Well, I guess I'd better get going and fix dinner for my hungry boys. Have a great week!

(P.S. Pictures will soon follow.)