Best photos of 2010

The year 2010 has been my most blessed yet. It's the year I became a mother, met my sweet Westley James and fell in love even more with my darling husband.

Here, for the fourth consecutive year on Life is Golden, I give you my 12 best photos of the year. May God bless us all in 2011.

Lilly the chilly dog during a January snowstorm.

A stunning Wichita sky about two weeks before Westley James was born.

Westley's great-grandmother admiring his tiny pink foot days after his birth.

Brian and Westley on an Assaria, Kan., farm in July, our first day trip as a threesome.

Lilly soaking up a summer day during an August neighborhood block party.

Brian, Westley and Eric during an August Royals baseball game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. It was West's first trip out of state.

Westley's first picnic in the park on a beautiful September day.

Westley, fast asleep in his nursery on a September afternoon.

Admiring a fabulous October rainbow from our backyard.

A Wichita church steeple, which I photographed in late November with a very thankful heart.

The Christmas tree at Bradley Fair, which I photographed when Brian joined me for a work-related charitable event that we attended together as an early holiday date.

Squeaky clean and happy during a December bath.

Here are my best-photos-of-the-year posts from previous years:

• Photos of 2009

• Photos of 2008

• Photos of 2007
  

My heart sighs

I turn a corner and discover something so simple, so beautiful.
Father and son.
Safe, happy and warm.
I smile.
I tiptoe.
I pray that their dreams are as wonderful
as the one I'm living with every breath I take.

More introductions

Saying that Westley is part of a big family may be a little of an understatement. On my side alone, Westley has 11 sets of great aunts and uncles, three sets of aunts and uncles, three cousins and more second cousins than I could ever count.

One fun part of that is all of the introductions we're experiencing, including a couple on my side of the family this month:

Westley met my mom's older brother Eric earlier this month. He was visiting from St. Louis.


Today, my beautiful cousin Brighid, a student at Manhattan Christian College who was in town for a New Year's Eve wedding, surprised us with a visit.

I hope Westley can keep everyone straight. It took Brian a few years ...

Christmas with family

We spent last weekend celebrating Westley's first Christmas with siblings, grandparents, Great-Grandma and other special people. A few photos from all of the fun:








Click to see more photos from the wonderful holiday.

Christmas morning at home

We started off our Christmas Day celebrations with a quiet morning at home with our customary cinnamon French toast and gift exchange. I vowed to only snap a few pictures so I could actively enjoy the day without the preoccupation of capturing it all in photos. A few scenes:





Westley was more interested in the wrapping paper and the tape on the packages than the gifts themselves. And, of course, he loved a $4 stocking stuffer more than the $80 floor gym. It was wonderful.

As always, Santa came for the pets. Dakota and Lilly got new collars, rawhides and new bones. Meow Meow got a kitty toy ... and liquid cat nip in a squirt bottle. Meow!

Brian was very thoughtful in his gift-giving. He gave me two wonderful books about raising boys and, in a fitting complement, a Shiatsu back-massaging chair cushion. Ahhh.

His favorite gift from me was a recordable book. I enlisted some help so that Westley's Great-Grandma can read my boys the story "The Very First Christmas" every Christmas.

Our night before Christmas

Westley and Aunt Lynn looked awfully cute together when we met up at Grandma's for the traditional beef-vegetable soup on Christmas Eve.

We stopped by for dinner before attending the 11 p.m. candlelight service at Aldersgate.


Brian read Westley the copy of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" that his grandfather had read to him. We have a great framed snapshot of Grandpa reading the same book to a little Brian years ago. I want to frame the above one, too, and display them together. We also now have our own special version of the book: a 1938 copy Brian bought on eBay this Christmas. There's something exciting about starting new traditions, and this is a Christmas Eve one we intend to observe.

Speaking of Christmas Eve and books, I surprised Brian and Westley with a board book for West: "What is Christmas?" by Michelle Medlock Adams. Westley loves to look at books while we're at church. (Bonus: It helps to keep him quiet!) Brian surprised us with a "Milk for Santa" cup that is from a local potter. We left it and homemade sugar cookies out for Santa.

The candlelight service was beautiful, and likely my favorite part of Westley's first Christmas. He stole the show a little bit (and was even photographed by a friend as Brian carried him, sleeping in his arms, when he went up to receive communion).

Merry Christmas!

For our family, for our world, Hallelujah! A baby changes everything.

With love and wishes for a merry miraculous Christmas,

Lori, Brian & Westley

Sweet Christmas

Brian and I have enjoyed sharing our baked goods with friends and family so far this Christmas season. Several of you have asked for the recipes, so I figured I'd share them here. Enjoy, and thanks to you for making my holidays a little sweeter!

From left: Nutty Chocolate Chip Biscotti, chocolate-covered peanut butter balls (see recipe below), pumpkin bread (recipe below), Lemon-Thyme Cookies, Cranberry Bliss Bars (a Starbucks copycat recipe) and cranberry bars (recipe below).

Peanut Butter Balls

This recipe from my college friend Sara, who saw my plea for a recipe like this on Facebook and shared her family's favorite with me. I opted to leave out the wax.

4 C Rice Krispies
2 C creamy peanut butter
1 stick margarine, softened
1 pound sifted powdered sugar

Beat peanut butter, margarine and sugar together. Add Rice Krispies and mix by hand. Make into about 60 balls. (I chilled the balls in the fridge at this point.) Dip in chocolate.

1 8 oz. pkg. semi-sweet chocolate bits,
1 8 oz plain Hershey bar
1/4 bar paraffin.

Melt in double boiler. Melt paraffin first, then add chocolate. Cover cookie sheet with wax paper to lay balls on as they are dipped.

***

Cranberry Bread

This recipe is a favorite of Brian's family.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoon shortening
1 tablespoon orange zest, grated
1 egg, well beaten
1 1/4 cup cranberries, chopped
3/4 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three loaf pans. In a large bowl, sift all dry ingredients. Cut in shortening. Add orange juice, zest and egg. Mix until blended. Add cranberries and nuts.

Pour into three loaf pans and bake 55 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

***

Pumpkin Bread

This recipe comes from Brian's great-grandmother.

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup pumpkin canned
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup raisins
1 cup pecans, chopped

Follow the directions for the cranberry bread, above, adapting with the listed ingredients.

A Nativity story

Westley loves his Nativity set, an early Christmas gift from Grandma B.


I had asked Santa for that toy and look forward to playing with it together as he grows up so we can talk about what Christmas is all about.

Westley's first college hoops

Westley attended his first college basketball game Tuesday night when he saw Wichita State defeat Tulsa at Intrust Bank Arena. (You can see Shocker head coach Gregg Marshall standing on the floor in this picture.)

It was a tight game, and we had fantastic seats: center court, about 15 rows from the floor.

Santa was at Intrust, so we seized the photo opportunity. West might not be so tolerant of Jolly St. Nick next year!

Advent candles

Brian, Westley and I had the honor of lighting the Love Advent candle at Aldersgate on Sunday.

This was part of the reading:

"As Mary held Jesus close to her heart and felt the warmth of the newborn babe, so today, may we hold you close in our hearts as we open ourselves in love to you."

Beautiful.

On a lighter note, Westley was mesmerized by the Pointsettas that are already decorating the church.


I'm looking forward to Westley's first Christmas Eve service tomorrow. If you're in Wichita and are looking for a place to attend church tomorrow, our church offers lots of services.

Christmas in Lansing

On Saturday, Brian, Westley and I drove to Lansing, Kan., to celebrate Christmas with my father-in-law's side of the family. The highlight was introducing West to his Great-Grandmother:

Great-Grandma with her son, grandson and her first great-grandson.

The afternoon featured lots of delicious foods, conversation and the annual dirty Santa gift exchange. I stole a stack of lotto tickets for my gift and was glad I did: I won $10 and a free ticket, which I still need to claim. Here's Brian plotting his next move:


Westley met lots of cousins and was the center of attention. With the help of three little girls, I fed him pumpkin for the first time. He loved it. It was a great party. It was nice to catch up with everyone, especially because it had been a couple of years since we'd made it to the annual gathering.

Seven months!

The Christmas season has been such a wonderful time to have a baby. I've been experiencing the sights and sounds anew through Westley, who turned seven months old this week. It's crazy that he's closer to his first birthday than to the day he was born. Where is that pause button?!

My heart still swells when I hold my little boy, and I feel so blessed as the holiday approaches.

West must have heard the "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" song. He's cutting his left front tooth! Once again, thank goodness for Baby Orajel. Sometimes that's the only thing that will stop the crying. Poor little thing. Growing up is hard work. And I truly mean that.

West's biggest milestone this month has been (wait for it, wait for it) crawling! One night Brian and I were eating dinner while relaxing on the couch and watching TV (multitasking is key these days). We were letting West play on the floor in front of us on a blanket with some of his toys. He was crying and reaching for me, so I coaxed him to come get me. And Brian and I watched in awe as the little squirt crawled my way. Yay!


That means, now with a little mobile man, we've been on the go a lot. We're saving all the baby-proofing business until after the holidays, but he has given me a couple of near-heart attacks already. He loves to go for lots of things he shouldn't, including the kitty bowls (empty or full), any cords or wires (eeeep!), paper and magazines (he loves helping me sort coupons) and Mommy's shoes (on or off).

Here he is grinning for the camera after he pulled a quilt top off the back of the chair at Mommy's sewing desk. Notice in the background the many ignored toys, including his Christmas stocking that we let him play with. Silly punkin.


Bath time continues to be an important time for Westley. He loves, loves, loves to splash and play and kick and really doesn't mind when water gets in his eyes or when his face gets wet. That bodes well for swimming lessons, which we have planned for 2011. We treat the bath like playtime rather than a necessary routine. He can't get enough of his bath toys, including his little blocks, a starfish fountain and Tempe, the temperature-taking turtle who we need to replace after water got into the display.

Our little baby is such a joy, and I can't wait for his first Christmas Eve and Christmas Day later this week! Love you, my little Wild West!