Stanford Family

Home updates

2010-11-16T21:56:00.000-08:00

We've made a few changes in the house since we got here almost two years ago. Here are a few photos. Anybody want that beautiful antique cradle??? I am not having anymore kiddos.
Love a formal dining room to entertain guests and have huge family dinners. Bring on Thanksgiving and Christmas!
A real entertainment and guest room! Come hang with us and you'll see!
I really thought I would HATE this arrangement when we looked at this house but I love being able to see what is going on in the living room while I am cooking in the kitchen!
This is my little deco corner.

The house has been a work in progress... well, at least filling it has been. Here are some pics of the house.

Fall 2010

2010-11-16T21:49:00.000-08:00

Here is my little Owen... Not sure what is hanging out of his nose but he is such a content little guy. Always happy and dancing!
And here is Chris and Ethan carving the only pumpkin of the season. The others, this year, we decided to decorate with ribbons and by painting.
Ethan braved the ordeal of sticking his hand into scrape out the "guts" of the pumpkin.
Ethan also enjoyed just drawing a scary face on the pumpkin with permanent markers. He is such a little artist!! I just can't help but to brag about his craftiness!
And here are the pumpkins that made it to decorate our front porch this year. I think I rather like the bow-decorating as opposed to the carving method.

4 and 1 years old!!!

2010-11-16T21:40:00.000-08:00

Owen turned one in August. So we did a double birthday party for the boys. Ethan, as he is demonstrating with his fingers here, turned four during this double party.

Aren't my boys such DOLLS!! I just love everything about them! Their best friends Preston McAbee and Felicity Buttram came to the little party to celebrate with us!
Ethan was pretty keen on blowing out the birthday candles. Owen just wanted to eat!

Spring 2010

2010-04-28T20:36:00.000-07:00

Spring is finally here and we are enjoying every minute of it! We are outside most of the time playing, working in the yard, or just taking walks.

More Easter 2010....

2010-04-04T16:46:00.000-07:00

Stanford Family Easter 2010

The Easter Bunny came.....

Ethan loved his Easter Basket and Owen liked playing with the wrapping paper on the candy of his Easter Basket.

We had a little Easter egg hunt in the backyard. Preston and Ethan had such a good time searching for the eggs. What a beautiful day it was!

We are so blessed to have wonderful friends and family to celebrate holidays with. This year Doug, Susan and Preston McAbee joined us. As well as, Greg, his girlfriend, Sara Senn, and her brother, Aaron Bacon. We all pitched in to make the standard large meal and really enjoyed spending time together.

Easter 2010

2010-04-04T15:43:00.000-07:00

Easter 2010

This year we made Easter Story Cookies the night before Easter. It was a wonderful way to help teach Ethan about why we really celebrate Easter. And they were yummy! I think this will be our new family tradition....

Begin this recipe on Saturday, the day before Easter.

1 cup whole pecans

1 teaspoon vinegar

3 egg whites

pinch salt

1 cup sugar

zipper baggie

wooden spoon or a wooden meat hammer

duct tape or packing tape

Bible

Preheat oven to 300*F.

Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the wooden spoon or hammer to break them into small pieces.

Explain that after Jesus was arrested he was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read John 19:1-3.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 teaspoon of vinegar into the mixing bowl.

Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross he was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30.

Add egg whites to the vinegar. Eggs represent life.

Explain that Jesus gave his life to give us life. Read John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste. Then put your pinch of salt in the bowl.

Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus's followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27

So far, the ingredients are not very appetizing! Add 1 cup sugar to the bowl.

Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because he loves us. He wants us to know and belong to him. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 10 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks form.

Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheets.

Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus's body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a piece of tape to seal the oven door.

Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

Leave the kitchen. If you've been making these cookies just before bedtime, GO TO BED!

Acknowledge that the kids are probably sad that they've worked hard to make these cookies, and now have to leave them in the oven overnight. Explain that Jesus' followers were in sad when Jesus died and the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 and 22.

On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Ask the kids to notice the cracked surface. Have them bite into the cookies. The cookies are hollow!

Explain that on the first Easter morning, Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read Matthew 28:1-9.

HE HAS RISEN!

Valentine's Day Breakfast

2010-02-14T20:30:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Valentine's Day full of family time. We slept in and had a wonderful pink brunch. Ethan really enjoyed it. And while it was delicious, my favorite part was cooking in the kitchen with Chris. There is nothing sexier than a man that can cook. LOL.

We had pink milk, pink scrambled eggs, pink waffles, and bacon! Yum!

Growing up.... and Volcanoes!

2010-02-01T18:23:00.000-08:00

Well, Owen is growing up so quickly. He is a perfect night sleeper. He is so happy all the time. He is about five pounds heavier than the average baby of his age, but we love every pound of him :)

Six months!

Ethan made this volcano! We waited until Chris got home before we set it off. We had a great time with this little home project.

You decide...

2009-12-17T20:42:00.001-08:00

So obviously the one on top is Owen because Ethan is also in the picture. But look at the uncanny similarities! The bottom picture is Ethan just days after he was born (hence the nice jaundice tan) and the one on top is Owen at one month old. I think they look like twins separated by three years.

Christmas Letter

2009-12-16T09:33:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends and Family,

We hope this letter finds you and your family well this holiday season. We have had many blessings in our lives this year. Most importantly our second son, Owen James, was born safe and healthy in August. He is a happy child with an amiable personality. Ethan is thrilled to be a big brother and has transitioned into the role smoothly. Also, Ethan turned three this year and attends preschool, which he loves. His current interests are in cars, airplanes, any sports, his friends at school and next door, and craft time at home.

We moved back to Middle Tennessee in May and have been very fortunate to purchase our first home in McMinnville. We feel so blessed to be raising the boys so close to family and in the area in which we both grew up.

Chris joined a law firm in Manchester and is working hard to establish himself in this new city. He has been able to become reacquainted with old hobbies such as hunting and fishing… and some newer ones such as mowing our lawn, cleaning gutters, and fixing any plumbing problems that may spring up.

Jaime graduated with a bachelor’s degree from East Tennessee State University in May and currently spends her time caring for the boys and maintaining the home.

This year we have missed our friends in East Tennessee thoroughly. We have also been blessed to become reacquainted with old friends and to make new friends here in our home town.

We hope that you have had a wonderful year and that next year will be a blessed one for you and your family. Please contact us by phone, email, or pen with the information below to let us know how you are.

Love,

Chris, Jaime, Ethan and Owen

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-01T14:54:00.000-08:00

So we hosted Thanksgiving Day again but this time we had much more room to cook and dine. My mother, Chris's brother Greg, and family friend Joyce, friends Doug & Susan and their son Preston, and our boys Ethan and Owen were in attendance.

The company was great! The food was delicious! And we had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

The dinner table....

Susan McAbee and Preston.

I have no idea why Ethan is laughing so hard.

Me and Owen!

Greg and Chris smoking the turkey...

This is my mother and myself in the midst of cooking. I am so glad she came to spend the evening with us.... and so thankful she took Owen for the night so I could get out and sleep a full eight hours.

This is Joyce and myself. I am so glad she came too! She is SUCH a great help too-- and a cooking whiz...

Catching up...

2009-11-05T22:17:00.001-08:00

After Owen's birth I became negligent with my blogging... but, hey, you have to be lacking somewhere.

Since then we have all been just basically adjusting to life with a baby in the house again. We are also really enjoying fall weather and enjoying just spending time together as a family.

We have done a few fall crafts to help get into the mood such as candy apples and decorating leaves with glitter.... and making ghosts with cotton balls.

Of course, fall also means UT football-- so there have been many games in Knoxville and much screaming at the television... and always lots of good game-day food.

We are looking forward to Thanksgiving here in McMinnville with family and close friends. Then we will begin the process of Christmas decorating.... (Ethan is already asking to hang his stocking"-- ha.).

Owen's Arrival

2009-08-13T21:04:00.000-07:00

Owen James Stanford

Owen is finally here. He was born via c-section on August 11th at 12:11 p.m. at 37 weeks gestation. I went to my morning appointment with my midwife on the 10th after having contractions every 2 to 3 minutes (my usual) all the night before and all that morning. I was in pain and upset, which made my blood pressure rise-- so they decided to go ahead and induce me.

I was so excited to FINALLY being nearing the finish line of this pregnancy. I called Mom and Chris and made arrangements to pick up Ethan from school. I went to the hospital and got hooked up to an IV and got some fluids and pain meds. They gave me a pill to soften my cervix and to encourage more contractions around 10 p.m. and continued me on the pain meds all night. Well, my contractions continued to come quickly and hard but I only dilated to 3 cm by noon the next day. When the doctor saw that Owen's heartbeat was not reacting to my contractions they decided to induce me. I was TERRIFIED!

They prepped me in the matter of minutes and rolled me into the operating room. They gave me meds in my IV to make me numb and the nurses kept pinching me over and over to see if I could feel anything.... I kept asking if they were pinching hard enough and that seemed to convince them I was ready. Chris came in as they put the sheet up where I couldn't see anything. My midwife came in to help me through the whole process. She talked me through the procedure (which took all of about 10 minutes-- and yes I could feel everything but it did not hurt). Chris got to watch Owen being born and then was also able to roll him into the nursery where Mom and Brooke were watching at the windows. I got to watch Chris's face, which was priceless and I got to hear Owen's first cry and see him.

After a brief stay in the post-op room I went back to my room and got to hold Owen. He looks SO MUCH like Ethan to me. He weighs 6 lbs. 11 oz. and is 19 inches long.

Ethan was THRILLED to see his brother and has shown no jealousy for him. He came into the hospital with huge eyes saying "That's my brother: Owen!"

I am now home and we are recovering from the surgery. It is not for the light-hearted but I'll admit it may be a bit easier to cope with (as the days roll past) than my first childbirthing experience with Ethan.

Chris and I are so happy to have two wonderful boys and lots of family & friends around to help us adjust.

37 weeks and STILL counting....

2009-08-10T07:53:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought I would post some belly pictures on here before the belly is gone (which I hope is SOON).

I have a doc appointment today ... in which I may resort to begging. I spent another lovely evening in the hospital last night but at least I got a shot of State-all (sp?) for it. If you don't see me on facebook complaining then hopefully I got some good news :)

Ethan's 3rd Birthday

2009-08-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ETHAN!

We celebrated Ethan's 3rd birthday this past weekend even though he doesn't officially turn three until Wednesday. We're hoping we will be dealing with a newborn by then and next weekend. But, the impromptu birthday bash was lots of fun and Ethan got everything he wanted (cars, cake and a transformer)-- he's so easy to please!

And here's a snapshot of the belly bumb....
... but excuse the no makeup/bad hair day.

More news on baby Owen

2009-07-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

As many of you know (via facebook) I am having lots of preterm labor and have been ordered to strict bed rest. My mother- and sister-in-law came in for three weeks to help out but had to return home in Utah. So, we put Ethan in childcare yesterday. I can literally see the school building from my living room window so it's nice knowing that he is not too far away.

I have a handy little IV pump in my leg that gives me a continuous dose of meds and bolus doses (larger doses) every four hours. So far, that along with bed rest have kept me from progressing any further. However, on July 31st they are going to take me off all medication and if I go into labor they will give me a steroid shot to help Owen's lungs develop and then just let me deliver. That will put him at 36 weeks gestation.

I have been told that Owen should be perfectly fine if born at 36 weeks gestation and shouldn't have to spend any extra time in the hospital. I go in again today for another ultrasound and will post any good 3d pictures I get.

Here are some I got a couple weeks ago and a belly shot or two.

This is me at 6 months in the back yard with Ethan in the background.

This is me at the Gilley pool in McMinnville at 7 months.

Here are a few shots of Owen at 29 weeks gestation.

Catch up time....

2009-07-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

Soooo much has happened since I last blogged. So this should be a fun little entry in playing catch up.

First, Chris got a job in middle Tennessee as a partner in the Fisher and Williams lawfirm in Manchester. He is really enjoying it right now and we are loving being back in the country. Last night I sat out on the porch and listened to the crickets and frogs for a while... my favorite sound in the world... and could not hear the faintest hint of a car.

The website for his new firm is www.fisherwilliams.com. It will soon be revamped with pictures of him and the other partner and the local area.

While Chris was away from Johnson City with this new job, Ethan and I stayed while I finished school. It was difficult but I have great friends who kept me upbeat and I did graduate on May 9, 2009.

Lots of family came out for graduation. All of Chris' immediate side of the family and my mom and aunt.

After that we went to St. Augustine, Florida, for a little vacation and to see my brother-in-law Matt and Jamie Cantrell get married! The ceremony was beautiful. And I am so happy and thankful to have such a wonderful sister-in-law.

When we came back we immediately moved to middle Tennessee. We bought a house next to the country club golf course (so far Chris has not been out to play golf yet) and we are really happy with it. Now if anyone wants to come visit they can have their own room, bed and bathroom. Ha. No more sleeping on the living room floor!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T21:57:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas

Hello everyone... Merry Christmas to you and yours. We took a couple weeks off to see family. First we spent five days with my family in middle Tennessee and on the 24th flew out to Utah to see Chris' family. Ethan was thrilled with two visits from Santa and all the gifts he received. So far we are having a great time and hope to leave the house (dig through the foot of snow) tomorrow and get out to the city. We hope that you have a wonderful holiday.

Winter Wonder Land

I am so glad I don't have to shovel snow like this all during the winter months but it is beautiful.

A good way to see if anyone reads this blog....

2008-12-25T14:58:00.000-08:00

The shirt says it all.... we're expecting again.

This is the only shot I snapped of him in "the shirt" that announced to the families that we are expecting again. We are just about 6 or 7 weeks along but since it was topic of several dinner conversations with friends, I'm sure some rumor would start going around anyway. Ha.

Water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink....

2008-12-19T10:37:00.001-08:00

Fish!

Yesterday we went to the Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, Tenn. with some friends from Johnson City. Ethan LOVED all the sharks and fish. He even got a stuffed Nemo from the gift shop (I mean, you have to go through there to get out of the place- how do you NOT buy something?).

Da- Dum... Da-dum... Da-dum... Here is our good friend Jaws.

2008-12-13T14:01:00.001-08:00

TURKEY DAY 2008

We had Thanksgiving dinner at our "house" (aka: 2-bedroom apartment-- that does not even have a kitchen table) this year. There were four women involved with cooking dinner and while I would LOVE to take credit for this scrumptious looking turkey, I can't. My sis-in-law-to-be smoked it!! Yeah, she's in charge of the turkey every year now. I made the precooked ham (oh yeah, baby-- stick in the oven and 1 hour later- PRESTO, it's done).

There were seven people sleeping in our apartment and 10 people eating dinner. But there was plenty of food. Unfortunately, not enough Tupperware. Actually, no Tupperware. At least we know now that those commercials about the Ziploc baggies being spill-proof are SO TRUE!!

This is just some of the spread. There was more on the stove and a couple platters of finger food to hold everyone over, which came in handy since the casseroles took MUCH longer to cook. Apparently, you have to add time on if you are planning to cook all four casseroles at the same time.

If you know Chris, then you know he really enjoys his food!! That should explain this smile.

2008-12-13T13:45:00.000-08:00

OUR YARD

There is a good sized pond in our yard. With beautiful trees and a little swing to sit in and just look out at the fish (and the TONS of geese that migrate in EVEN in the winter!).

LEFT: See the GIANT fish?? If you throw out some fish food, they will come right up to the surface every time. Ethan calls them sharks. BELOW: Ethan measuring out some fish food to throw in the pond and Lizzy searching the ground for some dropped seeds to devour.

2008-12-13T13:31:00.000-08:00

'BIG BOY' HAIRCUT TIME

This is Ethan's "before" shot during his big boy haircut.

And here is Ethan checking out his big boy haircut in the mirror. Such a handsome boy!!!

First Blog

2008-12-13T13:09:00.000-08:00

So, we have started a blog. Chris signed us up and now it is my job to figure out how to post pictures and write something that people might want to read.

To begin, we are a family of four. Chris, Ethan, our dog, Lizzy, and myself .We live in East Tennessee where Chris runs his law firm and I attend school. Ethan is 2 years old and attends school as well.

I just realized that we do not have any nice pictures of us together as a family. There are tons of just Ethan, so that is what I will post until I can get some of us all together.

Hope you enjoy this site. And I hope some day it looks better than what it does now!!