For your Christmas Eve...

Two things for your Christmas Eve....

Jonathan's mom's best friend, the other Susan- my other mother-in-law, had surgery on the 23rd. She same through the surgery ok but now seems to have an infection. Its scary. Please pray.

On a lighter note, go read this post my Uncle Tim put up on our extended family/other random people blog. I cried. I laughed so hard. I hope you find it as hysterical as I did.

Merry Christmas!

I Need Help: Another Addiction

I love to read.

I really love to read. When I was a child, my parents would have to make me stop eating to come eat. I read at breakfast with the book propped up behind the cereal bowl and my parents were constantly confiscating flashlights that I used to read under my covers.

I developed a way of reading that totally shuts out the rest of the world. It drives my husband insane. When I am reading a novel, I don't hear anything going on around me, even if you are speaking to me. And when I get engrossed in a novel, it pulls me back until I can finally finish it.

I never started the last four Harry Potters because when I started them, I just couldn't put them down. This week I read The Thirteenth Tale which was very interesting. I would recommend that novel to people who like a little mystery and suspense without being scary. Today I finished Twilight because I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Yeah the end was good but the rest of it was just mushy-gushy. I already have the second book checked out from the library and I'll probably read it since its there but.... I have to say I'm a little disappointed. I was really expecting more.

I'm going to do an end of the year post about the books I read this year and I hope you'll give me your very best recommendations for 2009. Life is too short to read mediocre books.

I Have An Addiction

I admit it.

I'm addicted.

to The Biggest Loser.

I can't tear myself away from the show. Especially the finale. I think it would be cool to make such an awesome transformation of yourself.

But not very cool to be so heavy you could lose half of yourself and still be a normal sized person.

In honor of you, the Biggest Losers, I ran/walked 2.41mi today pushing two munchkins in a double jogging stroller partly in the rain (whoops!). And I did not eat any chocolate.

But only because I couldn't find any in the house.

Caskey Cousins

Last month we were in Lancaster for Jonathan's grandmom's funeral. After the service, the church brought a huge lunch for all the family back at the house.

Jay trying to hold Sienna's hand

He succeeded! Jay is Sienna's cousin- older by only 3 weeks!

Kiran is hugging their other Caskey cousin William (4).

I like this picture. Sienna is REALLY happy.

Santa pics

Kiran's first Santa pics Christmas 2006

2007- Kiran with Santa 15 months

2008- Sienna 5 months and Kiran 2

Making Mommy Happy

After reading a story, tucking Kiran in and singing a few songs, I leaned in to give her a kiss.

Mommy: I love you, Kiran.
Kiran: I love you, Mommy.
Mommy: That makes me so happy.
Kiran: And Christmas lights.
Mommy: Yes, Christmas lights make me happy too.

Sienna-5 months

I did take 5 month pictures of Sienna on her 5 month birthday (yeah I remembered!) but these aren't them. These are just some of my favorite Sienna pictures from the past week.

I love love love the stage when babies play with their feet all the time!

Hodge Podge

Tonight I went on a date with my husband! A much needed date as the past few days have been stressful in the Caskey Casa. I must have eaten something (maybe at the wedding???) because Sienna has been very high maintenance. She doesn't want to be put down. I drove to High Point on Saturday because sweet Katie got married and it was wonderful and worth it and I'll blog about it later when people(Merritt, Sarah, Erin) send me pictures. But I got home at 12:20am and Sienna was up a lot and I was exhausted. I took two naps on Sunday. Kiran has just been whiney and defient and all that. So we called in the reinforcements and got us a break.

So I went on a date....and I wore my regular khaki pants! Not maternity pants!! 5 months, 3 days. I won't mention how I was back in my prepregnancy jeans 17 days postpartum with Kiran. First pregnancies and second pregnancies are different. So is being pregnant in India and being pregnant in America (watch out Emily!). Anyhow...I'm proud to be back although I still have more weight I want to lose. The running has been working. I'm keeping a running log on the sidebar. I don't care if anyone notices it because its very motivating for me. I also put smiley face stickers on my calendar every day that I run. It motivates me too.

I've been working on putting our lights on the Christmas trees and I didn't even finish getting them all on when one of the strands burned out. Sad. Now I'm unmotivated to finish.

Digital SLR

I did not get a Digital SLR camera. :(

BUT my parents did. :)

So we've been playing with it.

They brought me an early Christmas present- my double jogging stroller!!! I can't wait to use it!

Sienna is wearing the My First Christmas pjs that I wore 27 years ago! She has to wear them now because she'll prob outgrow them by Christmas (to be fair- I was born in Sept and she was born in July).

Polka Dots

As I changed Sienna's first diaper of the day, Kiran ran to Sienna's room and picked out an outfit for Sienna "all by self." I couldn't refuse her so this is the outfit that Sienna wore on the day her sister picked her clothes out.

Running

I've decided to become a runner. I want to be fit and healthy and of course lose the rest of the baby weight. And the America weight- the 10 pounds I put on when we moved back to America that I did not lose before getting pregnant last fall. I really desire to be healthy and strong but not crazy exercise fanatic. I have looked at all my options and I've decided I am going to become a runner. It fits my life right now. Its efficient and free. I can do it while the kids are awake. They can come with me! They can sleep in the stroller if they want (esp my double jogging stroller I'm getting for Christmas- shhhh don't tell). A gym is too expensive and at home work outs are either too hard that I don't stick with it or too easy that I don't get any results. So I will run.

This isn't the first time I've wanted to become a runner. My sister was an awesome cross country runner. The summer before our senior year of high school, LT & I decided we would just run with the cross country team in the mornings for a good work out. I mean my little sister could do it. I think we went twice. We were pathetic. This time I'm following the Couch-to-5K plan that my friend Kristen blogged about. I think taking it slow is key for me.

I was hesitant to post this because I hate putting myself out there. What if I quit? What if I can't do it? Everyone will know I failed. My sister will think I'm a wuss because I only jog for 60 seconds at a time right now. But... I decided to anyway. Here I go. Wish me luck!

Saying the Blessing

Usually we say the blessing "God is great, God is good...." before our meals. Kiran prays along with us getting some of the words right. Today I let her say her own blessing before lunch. She said,

God is great.
God is great.
God is great.
God is great.
God is great.
God is great.
God is great
Amen.

I think that God probably enjoyed that prayer.

4 Reasons I Should Not Be Allowed To Carry An Expensive Camera

1. February 2002 Train between Salzburg, Austria and Munich, Germany
2. December 2005 Plane in Chiang Mai, Thailand
3. April 2007 Shuttle to Plane Rome, Italy
4. November 2008 Chick-fil-A at Cherrydale Greenville, SC

1. Sometime on the train or in switching trains in Munich, I lost or left or had stolen my very first digital camera. We had a film camera but for some reason, only three of the pictures we took in Paris came out. So I don't have any pictures of when we got engaged except two pictures of gardens and one of my hand. The camera was never recovered.

2. We flew overnight from Delhi to Bangkok to Chiang Mai. I was delirious. I put my camera in its case under the seat in front of me and left it there. One call to Thai Air and one quick trip back to the airport and we had our camera back.

3. When we checked in at the airport in Rome, they said they needed us to take an earlier flight (why oh why? note for next time: just say no). So we rushed to get to the airplane- special little shuttle bus to take us to the plane- last ones on. We were sitting on the plane waiting for our paperwork to arrive when I realized I had left the camera on the little bus. We told the stewardess who radioed the little guy. He drove back and gave us our camera. Unfortunately everyone on our plane thought we were waiting on that instead of our paperwork which arrived at the same time. They weren't too happy about that.

4. We met Geoff & Brenna at CFA before the Furman game and just left the camera. I called on Monday and they had it. My mom works near there so she picked it up.

Jonathan says for Christmas I'm getting a bright orange camera case. Or having the case sewed to the shoulder of my shirt. My choice. Although what I really want is a digital SLR. Fat chance of that ever happening.

Sisters

About a month ago, I left the girls on Kiran's bed while I disposed of a stinky diaper. On my way back, Kiran yelled, "Mommy! I'm holding Sienna's hand!" I detoured to grab my camera and this is what I saw:


Kiran has really taken to being a big sister. She greets her sister every morning with a big "Good Morning Deedeena!" and kisses her good night every evening.

Kiran loves it when Sienna joins her for bath time!

And Kiran never lets Sienna do tummy time alone!

Sometimes Kiran reads to Sienna...

...and sometimes she gives Sienna her own book to read.


When we found out we were having a second girl, I got really excited about having two of the same gender close together. I started imagining fashion shows and playing house and occasionally dressing them alike. I forgot all the times my sister and I fought or worse, just lived as if the other one didn't exist. In my mind, my girls were already best friends. Yet, I still couldn't fathom the joy that I would experience from seeing them actually love each other. Sienna's eyes follow Kiran as she wanders around the den playing with her tea set or building with her blocks. Kiran makes sure that Sienna is happy and has a toy or two or nine to play with. I know there will be rough times ahead- I lived through them and they actually somehow produced a close relationship with my sister- but right now, I choose to freeze this moment in time. The moment before jealousy and competition and silent treatments. The moment of laughter and innocence and reciprocal adoration. This moment is mine....forever.

Almond Crusted Tilapia

I made this recipe the other night and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Ingredients:
2 lemons
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tilapia fillets (6 oz each)
1/4 c sliced natural almonds
1 sm onion, chopped
1 bag (12 oz) trimmed fresh green beans
1 pkg (10oz) sliced white mushrooms
2 tbsp water

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. From 1 lemon, grate 1 teaspoon peel and squeeze 3 tablespoons juice; cut second lemon into wedges. In cup, mix lemon peel and 1 tablespoon juice, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper.
2. Spray 13" by 9" glass baking dish with nonstick spray; place tilapia, dark side down in dish. Drizzle tilapia with lemon mixture; top with almonds, pressing them on. Bake 15 minutes or until tilapia turns opaque.
3. Meanwhile, in 12-inch skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil on medium-high 1 minute. Add onion and cook 5 to 6 minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally. Stir in green beans, mushrooms, water, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper. Cook about 6 minutes or until most of liquid evaporates and green beans are tender-crisp. Toss with remaining 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Serve bean mixture and lemon wedges with tilapia.



We really enjoyed this. It is lemony so if you don't like lemons, I wouldn't recommend you make this recipe. One of the lemons is just cut into lemon wedges to serve so you can get by with only one lemon. I got this recipe from Good Housekeeping which is now my favorite magazine. I'm kind of embarrassed about that.

Lancaster, SC

The first time I ever went to Jonathan's grandparents' house in Lancaster, SC was after Jonathan sang in the All-State chorus in Rock Hill. I drove down with his parents, watched him perform then drove over to Lancaster to stay the night. I stayed upstairs in his mom's old room which was just.the.same. as it was when she lived there in high school. It even had high school Gerald (his parents were high school sweethearts) in a frame on the dresser. Jonathan (6'4") and Jordan (6'3") shared the sofa bed in the den.

Sometime in the 6am hour, Jonathan and Jordan were awakened by a lady banging on the door of the house. She politely informed them that the shed about 30 feet from the house was ablaze. Lightening had struck the shed during a storm and it was up in flames.

Jonathan came upstairs, woke me up and told me that the shed was on fire. I thought this was his idea of a cruel joke and tried to go back to sleep. He finally convinced me he was telling the truth and we ran downstairs where the caveman instinct kicked in and all the men ran out to FIGHT the FIRE....with one garden hose. They decided to concentrate their efforts on the gas tank sitting beside the shed.

So Jonathan's grandmother- all 92 pounds of her- and me in my pajamas stood in the doorway and listened as every one of her canned green bean jars popped from the pressure. The fire department came roaring up but the shed was a total loss.

For years, his grandparents invited me to come visit but politely requested that I leave the fire at home.

Tomorrow we are going to Lancaster and for the first time, Jonathan's teeny tiny sweet grandmother won't be there. She went to be with Jesus on Sunday and while we are grateful that she is no longer ill, we are missing her terribly down here on earth. We'll miss her caramel cake and sweet tea. We'll miss her asking to serve us another helping of ...well anything...and everything. She was the tiniest person I knew but yet I couldn't stand up to her and tell her to stop putting food on my plate. She loved watching Kiran run around with an energy that she possessed a lifetime or two ago. We knew she was proud of us and we were proud of her. We look forward to honoring her...with a ceremony yes....but also with our lives. We are blessed to have a wonderful heritage to pass on to our girls. We'll never eat caramel cake (Jonathan's favorite) without thinking of you Grandmom Helms. You set a high standard for us and it beckons us to have more of the quiet and gentle spirit that defined your life. We love you. We miss you. Rest easy now.

Why Haven't I Been Blogging Much?

I usually blog at the end of my day. I think its replaced journaling for me. Its still a form of journaling just with pictures and videos and comments from other people which means I don't reveal my deep dark secrets anymore. Maybe I should pick up a paper journal again....

Anyhow, I think I haven't been blogging because most of the posts I have in my head will be pretty lengthy. And at the end of the day, I'm tired. I'm tired because Sienna has decided the past few weeks that she would get up two, three, four times every night. I feel fine during the day but by 10pm or so, my brain starts to get foggy. This all started when Sienna started going to bed at 6:30pm. She would get up twice to eat before waking at 8am. Then some nights she'd wake up three times or four or six. Bad pattern starting. So we are working on getting that back to one wake up call thank you very much.

Thankfully, I can put her in her bed awake for naps and nighttime and 9 times out of 10 she just drifts off to sleep. That makes my life so much easier. So..... instead of blogging about all the fun friends we've seen lately, our trip to Lancaster, Furman football games, Elijah, or anything else..... I'm going to bed.

4 Months Old

Sienna turned 4 months old yesterday. I realized that I took pictures of Kiran on the 7th of every month yet I hadn't recorded any of Sienna's month birthdays with a photo shoot. Second child syndrome anyone? So I pulled out Kiran's chair to try to get a good shot of Sienna at 4 months today.

I wasn't particularly pleased with any of these- the few I got before she face planted. But at least I have photographic proof that I care.


Sienna weighs 14lbs 2 oz and is 24 inches long. She's my little average baby. As the doctor listed off the things that he wanted her to be able to do by her next visit- sit mostly by herself, move (roll or scoot) to get objects that are out of reach, transfer things between hands- I realized that she's not going to be a little baby much longer at all! She's preparing to take off and I'm not sure I'm ready. I love having my little teeny baby...

Her doctor and I decided that she probably does have a cow's milk protein intolerance. The good news is that most kids outgrow this. The bad news is that most kids don't outgrow it until 12-15 months old! That's a long time without dairy!!! He said some babies do outgrow it earlier but the only way to know is to try dairy. He recommended trying every 2-3 months to see how she handles it. I haven't had dairy since I accidentally ate a piece of cheese on Sept 19 so I think its about time to try. And I'm going to try with one of Chick-Fil-A's new chocolate chip peppermint milkshakes!!!

I Voted!

Jonathan left before 7am this morning to vote before going to work. After standing in line 2 hours and 45 minutes, he got to vote! Melanie and I planned to take turns keeping our 4 kids at her house while the other one went to vote. Melanie went up there around 10:30am and the line was still about 3 hours long! So we regrouped and decided to go back up after the kids had naps. So at 3:15pm Kiran, Sienna, our double stroller, S's car seat, S's diaper bag, K's backpack and my purse got in line at BSHS. It was kind of disheartening because periodically workers would come through calling for people whose last names started with certain letters- but never A-F. So we colored with markers and doodled and read Fairy Tales and talked to everyone and ran down hallways and and nursed and banged on lockers and took naps and spun around on the middle of the hallway. Before I went, I decided that if Kiran and Sienna got very fussy that I would leave. They were amazing. I couldn't have asked for them to be any better. After waiting two hours and 30 minutes, Jonathan arrived to take them home.

After waiting three hours and fifty minutes, I finally got to cast my vote. I was proud to be able to take part in our democratic process although it was a long afternoon. I was really proud of all the people who stayed. I don't know how many came and left after seeing the lines but many, many people stayed and waited and voted. I ended up in line with three other families who live in my neighborhood. I met more people from my neighborhood in line to vote than I have living there a year. Not really. But close. All the A-F's bonded because our line was the slow line. We came up with ways to make the process better. They could hand out buzzers like Outback and when they go off you got to come vote. Or like Disneyworld, you could come take a ticket and the ticket would tell you what time to come back and vote.

Anyhow, I'm planning to wear my I Voted sticker for at least the rest of the week. I earned it.

Halloween Pictures

Halloween night Kiran, Sienna and I joined my sister and her family plus their friends in Fountain Inn for a little trick or treating, petting zoo, music, etc.


Kiran was a giraffe (Thanks Melanie!) and Sienna was a hot dog (Thanks Danielle!)


I just wanted to eat her up! Except I don't eat hot dogs.


Brooks got to push both double strollers. He got a few strange looks.

Halloween Photo

Trying to get 1 3-year-old, 2 2-year-olds, and 1 1-year-old to all look at the camera at the same time...

Pumpkins, Apples and Chick-Fil-A

A few weeks ago, we headed up the mountain to Hendersonville to pick out a pumpkin, get some apples and of course eat at Chick-Fil-A. We took our own personal photographer with us to document the occasion. Ok not really. Our friend Mandi did come with us and she took lots of pictures with her film camera. I haven't seen one of those in ages.Kiran, Mandi, Sienna

Football in Full Swing

Memories of Our Trip to NC

- We stayed one night with Katie and Noah. Kiran kept calling Noah "Paul" (he kinds looks like a Paul she knows). We told her that his name was Noah. She said ok and from then on called him "Moses"

- Kiran also called a 5 day old baby "Baby Jesus"

- While Kiran was up in the play car in the Chick-fil-a playground, one of the 5 year old twins came in and said, "Hey! You're cute!" I looked at Katie and asked if my two year old had just been hit on at CFA....

- Playing Wii for the first time- I played bowling. J played bowling, boxing and golf. Very fun.

-I stayed up waaaaay tooooooo late talking to Erin Thursday night. Its painful even to think about now. But it was fun while it happened.

Mom's Pictures

I'm working on scanning some of my mom's old pictures. The album I have right now is from 1984. Its been fascinating to me because, for the first time, I identify more with my parents in the pictures than myself. I enjoy peeking into what their lives were like when they had two little girls. It seems so familiar- birthday parties, going to the park, in pjs, in the bathtub, cutting the grass....just with a little different hair styles and 80s style clothing.

Dad aka Chief

I wish I could have known my parents when they were my age (Technically I was born when my mom was 27 but I don't exactly remember that time period). I wish I knew what they were thinking as they learned to discipline their spirited firstborn or seen the joy with which they welcomed their second (also spirited). Were they like me? Am I like them? Did I learn this or is it just in my blood? Did they have it all figured out or was it kind of a learn-as-you-go process? When did they start feeling like real parents and not like this is all pretend? I love taking the time to really look at these pictures and glean a little bit of them when they were like me.

Links to Other Blogs

I deleted all my links to other blogs! On purpose! They were way outdated so I decided to just chuck it and start over. So.....if you have a blog and you want me to link to your blog just let me know and I'll put you on my blogroll!

Sunday Tidbits

1. I bought candy corn as my sweet treat this week. I love the yellow, orange and white ones and I love the pumpkins but I'm not a big fan of the ones with chocolate on the top. I mean I'll eat them but they aren't my favorite. Can you buy candy corn all year or only at Halloween?

2. I am obsessed with Sonic's cherry limeades. They are one of the few treats that don't have dairy although even when I can eat dairy again I'll still be craving these. Yum.

3. I put Sienna down for a quick nap at 6:30pm last night (she's been going to bed between 8-9) and she didn't wake up again till 12:30am (she had last eaten at 4pm). She ate and went back to sleep till 6am. She ate and went back to sleep till 8am. She slept 13.5 hours last night.

4. Its really truly fall now. I love the leaves, the briskness in the air, wearing long sleeves, the bright blue skies, my harvest candle.

5. Kiran woke up from her nap after 1 hour today. She almost always sleeps 1.5 hours. I went in to her room and she looked kinda sleepy. I laid down in her bed with her and we just looked at each other. I would rub her hair or stroke her face but we mostly just laid there and looked at each other for nearly 10 minutes. It was one of my most precious mommy moments for me because Kiran is rarely still. Or quiet. What is the secret to hiding away these times so I can treasure them the rest of my life?

Sienna's dedication

A few weeks ago, we dedicated Sienna at the church we now call home, Hope Point Comm Church. I love this picture of us with our pastor b/c it captures Richard perfectly. He preaches with his eyes closed half the time. He has an amazing gift of putting words together in a unique and challenging way.

These are the questions Richard asked us:

1. Do you recognize that these children are precious lives who belong to God and have been entrusted into your care that you might teach them to delight in the Lord and reveal His grace by serving others?
2. Do you promise to make your home a place where the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of your children can be met as God gives you the necessary resources to fulfill your role as parents?
3. Do you promise to continually lead your children to Jesus Christ so that as they mature, they will have the opportunity to personally invite Him to become the Savior of their lives?
4. Do you promise to raise your children according to the teaching and instruction of the Bible so that God's character may be formed in them and His purpose accomplished through them?

Afterwards all the family went out to eat at McAlister's Deli. We love living so close to our family. We were honored that Papa, Mimi, Jordan, Beth, William, Jay, Chief, Grandma, Brooks, Erin, Brody, Addy, Sadie, Will, Lauren, Uncle Steve and Aunt Debbie came to celebrate us. There is comfort in knowing that we have such a support system around us to help us raise our girls.

Chief and Jay dressed alike!

Caskey family