Long Time, No Blog

Well hi! Yes, I know it has been 5 months since I have posted. I cannot believe that! So much has happened in those 5 months. Wow--where do I begin?!

Well...things have been CRAZY!

In MARCH, my company had a "realignment" which is another word for downsize. Thankfully, I was able to keep my job. However, my territory changed drastically. This has increased my travel and really kept me busy learning a new territory, a new drug, new offices and new customers. I spent the month of APRIL running in circles as I was trying to keep pace with Sam --9 months at the time--and trying to learn this job and study/take tests for a new drug. Around the same time, I was asked and delightfully agreed to take on a volunteer position with Church of the Highlands as the Small Group Coordinator for our campus here in Tuscaloosa. It has been awesome! I truly love it. I feel like I'm able to use my gifts for the Lord! In April, I also had to attend a 9 day business meeting in Las Vegas, that was the longest I had been away from Sambam. I missed him, and Chris, a LOT! He started crawling a couple of days after I got home.

MAY was still busy...we just kind of kept on with work and church and being together as a family on the weekends. It started getting really hot! We also had a brief stay at Children's Hospital (again, poor thing) bc Sam had gotten the RSV virus. He didn't take any meds, just oxygen and fluids. Bless his heart. I feel like God let us be there so I could run into a childhood friend, whose daughter was in the Special Care Unit (where Sam was) b/c she had suffered a major head injury from the tornado. They lived in Holt when the storm hit. With many special people's help we were able to pretty much furnish their new 3 bedroom home in Sylacauga!!! More on that later, I will have to dedicate an entire post to this story!!! It's been a joy to be a small part of God's rebuilding plan for one family.

JUNE has still been busy, but fun. Chris and I have been getting into movies at night after we put Sam to bed. It's fun to "date" and just have our time. We love renting from the RedBox! We also got ring side seats for the Deontay Wilder boxing match last weekend at the new amphitheater. That was a first for us, but it was really fun! Our dear friends, Andrew and Ashley Bice had their sweet baby girl, Madelyn Kate on June 7. She is precious! We could not be happier that Andrew and Ash get to experience one of God's absolute biggest (and tiring) blessings, parenthood :)

Sam is growing like a weed:

-crawling (army style, on his belly)

-crawling on hands and knees

-pulling up on anything and everything, including walls!

-saying bye-bye while waving, saying ma ma, and da da

-anytime someone says "hello" he puts whatever he has up to his ear, as if talking on the phone

-he still likes "Praise Baby" DVDs, but is starting to like Sprout TV and cartoons

-still NO TEETH!!! Dr says it's ok. He still loves his baby food. No big boy food for him, he gags and throws up everytime.

-At 11 months: 26 lbs., lots more blondish hair, long eyelashes, deep brown eyes, sweet gummy smile, big legs, and well, just pretty big all over, haha

-At 11 months: 24 mo. clothes, size 4 diaper

-Loving going to Noah's Ark Dayschool 4 mornings a week and then getting picked up by Honey or Hoppy at noon and getting to go play with the campers at Baseball Country in the afternoons! He is the youngest camper we have ever had, haha!

A Fun Summer:

We are going to Destin for a few days in JULY with Caroline, AJ and miss Olivia....we are really excited and looking forward to it! We are taking our wonderful babysitter that keeps both Olivia and Sam and goes to our church--->Kristin! She is truly a blessing to both the Mocklers and the McCunes.

I am also gearing up for Sam's 1st Birthday. Umm...excuse me....no one told me the 1st Birthday was such an ordeal! I know it's sorta my fault, but there is a lot of planning involved! I'm pretty much finished but need your prayers bc I'm making the cake (egg-free cake!). Post and pictures to follow after party!

Thanks for reading. I promise not to wait so long next time. May God bless you abundantly. This past Sunday the pastor read these Promises from God and we said Amen after each one. I loved it! You try it.

You are more than a conqueror in Christ.

Amen.

He is our Shepherd, we will not want.

Amen.

God has great plans for your life, a hope and future.

Amen.

Nothing will be able to separate you from God's love.

Amen.

God is for you, not against you.

Amen.

Blessings,

Alex

Motherhood Is..

I don't claim to be an expert on anything; however, since becoming a mom last summer there a few things I have learned (mostly all through trial and error). As my dad always says, "I don't know a lot about a lot, but I do know a little about a little." Thankfully, motherhood is an area where I now know a little. It is the greatest joy and biggest transition I have ever known from my previous life.

I'd like to share what Motherhood Is to me...other moms out there may be able to relate:) And yes, all of these are true stories of my 6 months as Sam's mom!

MOTHERHOOD IS...

-Motherhood Is..Finding a teething ring in my makeup bag.

-Motherhood Is..Getting ready to walk into an office with my black suit and heels on, and realizing there is an odor on my shoulder. Don't worry, I have put on a jacket that has dried spit up on the shoulder! Guess that one didn't make it to the dry cleaning bag.

-Motherhoods Is..Picking a little person's "boogies" and not being grossed out one bit. I actually feel a sense of accomplishment.

-Mother and Fatherhood Is..Having a Friday night date with my handsome hubby at Babies R Us buying a car seat only to end with a romantic dinner of chicken-n-dumplins at the Cracker Barrel. (bc it's family friendly of course, and there's always the big cozy fireplace!)

-Motherhood Is..Realizing that going to the gym is going to be a lot harder now bc A)they must have childcare but do you really want to have your child in daycare for 8 hours only to be followed by another hour of daycare at a gym? No. or B)you have to have a babysitter C)You use your baby to exercise, Sam weighs almost 22 lbs...Perfect weight!

-Motherhood Is..Realizing that, pre-baby, in all your childbirth classes and books you read made you a staunch "By the Book" mom only to find out that after the baby is born, "By the Book" is not always "REAL LIFE". Like at some point, the baby is going to roll over and fall asleep on his tummy. Or, sometimes the pacifier falls on the floor, but it's not always easy to scald it, sanitize it and clean it with everything under the sun. Works perfectly fine to stick it your mouth, or a nearby glass of tea is great too.

-Motherhood Is..My friend told me this would happen: learning to take the world's QUICKEST showers. and I mean Guiness Book quick. And you can forget shaving your legs each time, armpits always, but legs, they can wait one more day. You have a baby sitting outside the shower getting restless and not liking the bouncy seat anymore. You have to hurry!!

-Motherhood Is..Wondering if the 8th wonder of the world could possibly be baby gadgets. You really come to appreciate the swing, the exersaucer, the Johnny Jump Up, the Bumbo, the Leap Frog, the Praise Baby DVDs and the Ole Standard--the pallet on the floor. The more gadgets/gear=the better and easier your life will be. However, it would be amazing if someone could come up with some SOCKS that will actually stay on baby's feet.

-Motherhood Is..Not thinking twice about the conversations you now have with girlfriends, sorority sisters, moms, grandmoms and the random lady at the Publix checkout. These conversations almost always include:

-breastfeeding. did you breastfeed? how long? you get points if you did, you get more points the longer you did it.

-makes/models of breastpumps. you get points for Medela/Double Electric

-how old is baby? how big is baby? you get more points for having a fatter baby

-who is your pediatrician? opinions greatly vary but we LOVE our family practice

physician.

-which carseats are best? You get points for Graco, Chicco, Peg-Perego, Eddie Bauer and Britax.

-which daycares are best? you get more points for being in the top daycare eschelon, which include prestigious churches or University Programs, where one has to be on a waiting list before baby is conceived, along with your $1200.00 deposit, before baby is even born.

-how does baby sleep? you get MAJOR points if he sleeps all night, and you might get a prize if he sleeps in his own bed.

-who is your baby's photographer? you get points for the doing the "one year package" with newborn, 3M, 6M, 9M and One Year pics. you score extra points if you are paying the equivalent of a mortgage payment on your baby's first year pictures.

Note: I think all of these are funny and you do get what you pay for. I do have some "points" from this list! I just think the trends are very entertaining!! :)

-Motherhood and Fatherhood Is..Staying awake the first few nights baby is in his own crib to just sit together on our bed and stare at the video monitor. However, baby is in fact only one room over. We could probably hear him but feel 10 times better by being able to look at a monitor, especially Chris :) Every other question is, "Is he breathing?" "Yeah, I think so." "Go check." Repeat.

-and Thinking the video monitor will come in handy during the teenage years, granted it still works!

-Motherhoods Is..Being completely satisfied when your house looks like a State of Emergency. And I mean, it truly is a great feeling. That God has provided a house to begin with, a sweet baby and the fact people have given our child so many wonderful toys and books. Who cares if it's a total disaster? This ain't better homes or gardens :) Children don't remember messes, they remember fun times and the love they feel.

-Motherhood Is..Being able to appreciate in your heart all the mothers and grandmothers of the world. Especially mine. I love you mama, Gee, MeMe, Dandy, Ruby, Jane, Granny Edna and Granny McCune!

-Motherhood Is..Soaking up the truth that God DELIGHTS in us, adults, as His babies.His beloved kids. Just like when I am rocking Sam at 2 in the morning. I'm not consumed with any mistakes he has made that day. I'm not worried about how he might mess up tomorrow. I'm not comparing him to anyone else in the world. I simply love holding him and wanting GREAT and SUPERNATURAL things for his life. That's how God sees us. I have to remind myself. It's an amazing love.

-Motherhood Is..Letting go. Letting go of fear for tomorrow, fretting over the future. Any feelings of anxiety over your child(ren) or family. Motherhood is giving your child to the Lord, knowing that He loves Sam more than Chris or I do....WOW!!! and knowing He will always take care of Sam. I simply get the amazing and important job of parenting him, guiding him and pointing him to Christ.

-Motherhood Is..a blessing. IT IS HAVING YOUR HEART WALK AROUND OUTSIDE YOUR BODY ALL THE TIME :)

God bless,

Alex

Happy New Year!

Hi friends!

It is pretty but chilly outside, and there is no snow or ice remaining but due to school closings, Sam and I have a snow day! Since I am caught up on my work, I wanted to update the blog. Since writing last, we have had many fun times throughout the holidays. Life is moving SO fast, can someone slow it down? Sam will 6 months old next weekend!!

My parents went to Italy over Thanksgiving break, so Chris and Sam and I went to Sylacauga to visit. We had a great time. Over Christmas we were fortunate to be able to go to Sylacauga for 2 nights, then come back to Tuscaloosa on Christmas Eve. Sam had a great time and although he didn't exactly know what was going on at Christmas, he knew it was something special. For the first time, our church had a Christmas Eve service and although Sam and I couldn't go, I'm glad Chris was able to.

Over Christmas, Sam came down with bronchiolitis. No that isn't a misspelling of bronchitis. Babies have tiny bronchioles that make up their airway which can become enflamed, due to a viral infection. This is pretty much the same thing as bronchitis in adults, but infants are more vulnerable, especially since their entire respiratory system is still developing. So the day after Christmas I took him to Children's hospital ER with mom and Chris in tow. They kept him overnight and we were very relieved to know he could breathe okay. We got to go home the next day. For those of you who have never been, that hospital is a true blessing to our state and they love kids. It is an amazing place :)

Some other interesting/crazy happenings at the McCune home:

-I learned how to make homeade baby food with a machine mom gave me called a Beaba. Sam is getting used to "real" veggies pureed for babies. Sidenote: when the veggies are cooking I like to stand over the steam for a cheap, quick,"facial". Fancy, no. Efficient, yes. Mom was laughing at me this weekend as I was killing two birds with one stone. haha.

-Chris has been deer hunting every chance he gets. He doesn't want to just kill anything, so he is patiently waiting on the "the big one." He has some awesome friends that take him hunting on land they have access to. For this and many more reasons, we LOVE our Ttown friends. They enrich our lives so much.

-Mom, Sam, mom's friend Sara and me went to Nashville to visit Drew and his adorable girlfriend, Sydni, the weekend before the big ice storm. We went to the Ryman to see the Opry, and got to stay at the Hermitage Hotel--which is AH-MAZING. (thanks for the connection Sydni!!) You should add it to your bucket list.

-Chris and I fell prey to a really sweet girl and an amzing saleswoman from whom I purchased $650.00 worth of kitchen knives. WHAAAT. I know. Silly. Especially with a baby, daycare, still not having sold our bham home, Chris's truck in the shop etc. So, we sent them back. Decided our money should go towards a King Size bed. Never had one, very excited about it!

-Chris and I are both staying busy with work, thankful to both have jobs we love.

-Still trying to sell our townhome in bham, it's a great deal. Pray we can sell it this year! http://www.riverpointelane.com/ if you know of someone looking :)

Sam 5 month updates:

Weighs 20 lbs

28.5 inches long

Discovered his feet, thinks they are the best

Loves to roll over still

Got an exersaucer/jumper that he loves to play in

Size 3 diaper

9 mo. size clothes

Loves baby food! all fruits and veggies and LOTS of them.

Sam 6 month updates:

Obsessed with his hands, like to watch his fingers moving

Likes to roll all the way across a room

Likes it when you pull him up to "stand" (we sing stand up, stand up, for Jesus, you soldiers of the cross :)

Loves grabbing toys off the floor

Loves loves grabbing his feet and toes

Loves trying to get under furniture

21.5 lbs, 29.5 inches long

Size 3 diaper

12 mo. size clothes

Loves laughing out loud!!

Likes to hold his own bottle

** I would love to post Christmas pictures BUT somehow my computer deleted all the ones I had taken in the past 2 months, so I'm waiting to see if they can be recovered. ** Will post if they are recovered. Pray they can find them!

I pray you all had a fantastic Christmas and New Year. Congrats to all my Auburn friends on the big win. The state of Alabama is blessed with talented athletes!

Let's all be steadfast in praying for God's abundant blessings on 2011 in our hearts, our families, and our churches.

All my love,

Alex

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. James 1:12

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3

Breathe Easy

Daddy coming home from work, saying "there's my bud!"
Eating his peas, yummm.
Pop and Nana and the youngest Bama fan during the Iron Bowl, RTR anyway!
4 months old
Hello!
Rosie and Sam, before we knew this wasn't such a great idea :)

Well hello friends! It's been awhile.

Whew! A lot has happened since I have written. We have been busy. I bet you have, too. The Thanksgiving and Christmas season brings so much to do, to cook, to mail, to shop, all while working a full time job, and having a full time family. But I believe the key to enjoying it all is to slow down and find peace and rest.

We are doing a series at our church right now, from which I have learned so much. When Christmas is said and done, and someone asks me what I got for Christmas, my answer without hesitation will be, "peace." I have gotten so much PEACE lately. The Lord has shown me an amazing peace in the middle of chaos at work, with family and Sam's breathing issues and allergies (more on that later). I have learned that although there will NEVER be "peace on earth" (Luke 12:51) there WILL be "on earth peace" and goodwill towards men on whom God's favor rests. (Luke 2:14) So, in the middle of this crazy holiday season, I am so very thankful that God has given me an extra dose of HIS peace, which truly passes all understanding. If you would like to hear the whole message about this, check it out at http://www.churchofthehighlands.com/media/series/silent-night. It is part one.

Update on Sam:

Sam is doing great, although we hit a minor bump in the road! As you know from previous posts, he was having eczema, and sounding very rattly (is that a word?). We had to do breathing treatments and he had to take some medicine for it. We had 2 chest x-rays done and he didn't have any kind of infection so the next step would be allergy testing. We had him tested last Thursday and let me brag on him, he was super brave!! They poked him 20 times on his chubby little forearms. I made them poke me first, just to make sure it wouldn't be too bad. It wasn't :) They tested for 10 common allergens like dust, mold, dog, cat, etc. on one arm and 10 common food allergens on the other arm. WELLLLLL.....DOGS and EGGS are the culprit. We left feeling a little defeated, yet excited because we now had new knowledge. Of course we wanted to do whatever we had to to get him better but that meant finding a new home for our beloved canine and first baby, ROSIE. Thanks to my sweet aunt and uncle, Rosie now has a wonderful new home with two amazing kids, Julia and Jack. Chris and I will always appreciate their sacrifice. Sam is breathing easy now. It made me think about how truly blessed we are to be Americans, to live in a land where you can easily take care of your child's health needs. Thank you veterans, thank you.

(A little late) 4 month milestones:

eating baby foods! he looooves bananas, but who doesn't? :)

laughing out loud

rolling over and over and over

sitting propped up, like a "big boy"

playing in his Bumbo chair

following your hand and mouth with his eyes, mostly when others are eating. he loves to eat!!!

he is 28 inches long, weighs 19 lbs, wears a size 3 diaper and 9 month size clothes

Favorite things to do:

go to his honey and hoppy's house

go to his nana and pop's house

watch his Praise Babies DVD

go to the nursery at church

lay in the middle of mommy & daddy in their bed while they make a "Sam-wich" out of him!

play with his friends at school

Thanks for visiting. Praying all of you reading this will experience a renewed peace and joy this year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Alex

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30

Eczema, Teething and our first cold, OH MY!

It's so true what they say about becoming a parent, much of it definitely IS trial and error. While our baby has been cool, calm and collected (for the most part) for these past 4 months, something else was going on of which we were unaware. Until recently that is. We took Sam to the doctor last weeks and it appears as if our little man has eczema! His doctor says it looks like a milk allergy. He must have been itching and irritated for quite a few days. Sooo....we changed formulas. Not only did we change formulas, we changed to a special hypo-allergenic formula made in Europe-yay! You can't buy it in stores and must order in bulk, online. It costs roughly $22.00 a day to feed him. You do the math! And while I stressed about the enormous cost of this formula, I just said, "God will provide! He will help us make it work." A couple of days after seeing the doctor, I called my insurance company just to see if they could offer any assistance. I didn't expect anything, not a cent. Surprisingly, the nice lady on the other end said they would reimburse us for 90% of the costs. What?!?!?! Ninety percent. I was again reminded of my God's faithfulness-always. He knew we would need that, and yet again, He provided. He constantly shows us that He alone is in control and that He truly knows our needs. That's comforting:)

So while we are working this allergy thing out, we are entering the ever-exciting world of TEETHING. On top of that we are experiencing our first cold with a stopped up,

runny nose. It comes in threes, huh? :) Even through all that, Sam has been a good baby still with plenty of smiles and giggles. He is sleeping all night, which is wonderful too! Especially for mom and dad.

Tonight I opened a drawer in the kitchen and caught a glimpse a beautiful, hand-sewn hand

towel that mom gave me when I was pregnant. It's pink with dainty flowers and across the front in brown monogramming says, "motherhood is the toughest job you will ever love." I smiled because truer words have never been spoken. Tonight I am thankful for my mama and all the hard work it took, day in and day out, to raise two children (17 months apart) in a sticky, tiring, busy world.

And she did it all, all the time, with love in her heart and a smile on her face. She still does.

Sam is 4 months old today. I'm going to try to post pictures to catch up on the past few months since I started the blog a little late.

Love to you and yours. Let us rejoice with thankful hearts. God has done great things!!

Love, Alex and Chris

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Welcome to the McCune Family blog, Chralex + One!

Well, here we

go! I decided to jump

on the blog train. I have never written a blog, but decided to do so after some urging from friends and family members. It seems like a great tool to stay connected, especially so we can keep our family and friends updated on our baby boy and all that we are doing as a family.

Someone recently told me that people get boring after having a baby. I disagree. I think people come alive after having a baby. Now th

at we have a baby, our lives are truly rich! Chris and I both, at different times, after leaving the hospital with our new bundle of joy, remarked to each other that the whole world looked

completely different, in a good way. I will never forget leaving the hospital and looking around and thinking to myself, "where am I?" Northport, Alabama looked like a place I had never been, a happy place, full of light and adventure. McFarland Boulevard, a busy road I have traveled hundreds of times in my 25 years looked like a new road, almost like I was in a dream where I had never felt happier, more alive and more satisfied. I checked into the hospital on July 13, 2010 regular old me but on July 18 I left a new person, a mommy! Because the "mommy spot" in my heart that had always been there, was now filled. It was filled with a new hope, a new joy --of my little family of 3. That experience also gave me a new appreciation and more love for my mother-in-law, who felt this exact same thing 27 years ago when her son, Chris, was born. And he is now my sweet husband. I know exactly how she must have felt and still feels about her very own baby boy. When I laid my eyes on Sam, I had a new perspective of how God sees us and how He feels about us. Completely smitten. Overly obsessed. Just the way I feel about my boy, nothing he could ever do or say could make me love him any more, or any less. I just simply love him, with all my heart. That's how God feels about us. And that--my friends--is true love :)

Sam's 3 Month Milestones:

-Cooing and laughing, especially when daddy tickles him

-Rolling over, everywhere! He likes to push up and look around.

-Going to daycare and loving his teachers, Mrs. Lacy and Mrs. Alyson

-Loves Wednesdays with his "Hoppy" for "Hoppy Hour(s)" going to Mr. Bill's, running errands, visiting family and riding around in his wagon.

-Having some mild allergies, we are changing formula

-Size 3 diaper

-25 inches long, 18.5 lbs.

Happy Fall Y'all! Blessings to you and your loved ones. Love, Alex & Chris

But I Trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. Psalms 13:5